Wicked Game

Part Four

"Angela." A distant male voice called her name in the hall near the cafeteria.

Angela stopped and scanned the faces behind her. Ben Cheney's was lit in a full smile, and his hand was in the air, fingers spread. Her brows drew together, and she glanced behind her to see if any of his crowd was nearby.

"Hey," he said, the moment he caught up to her.

"Um, hi." Angela fingered the strap of her backpack and waited to see if it was some kind of joke.

"We're in the same physics class." Ben grinned and angled his shoulder to almost touch hers.

"Yeah." Did he think she hadn't noticed?

"So your partner…"

"Nick," Angela supplied.

"Right." Ben nodded and leaned closer. The faint hint of Obsession cologne reeled Angela in. His lips were inches away when he said, "Since Nick will be out for a while, you should partner with us for the lab on Friday."

"With you and Royce?" Angela wanted to be sure.

"Why not?" he asked, sliding his hands into the pockets of his khaki pants. "You're smart. I'm smart. Royce is dumber than a rock…"

"Fuck off, Ben," Edward appeared out of nowhere and stepped between Angela and his teammate.

Emmett stood a few feet away, fist flexing at his side. Ben took a step back and looked in both directions. He held both hands up in front of him, but Edward followed.

"Easy there, buddy," Ben said. "You're not supposed to lay a finger on me."

"Get fucked," Edward replied.

"So hostile." Ben shook his head and turned to go.

Angela looked between the boys and made her choice in an instant. She reached for Edward's hand and tugged him back to reality. "Let's go," she said, pulling him toward the cafeteria.

Edward watched Ben until he turned the corner, then he glanced down at Angela's fingers twined with his and felt the warmth of her palm. He let go and reached for the door to hold it open for her and Emmett. Angela waited for him to catch up, and they walked to their table in silence.

Rosalie knew something was up before they even made it to the table. "What happened?" she asked.

"Cheney was fucking with Angela in the hall," Emmett said.

"No," Angela corrected. "My physics lab partner is out with chicken pox, so Ben offered to let me work with him and Royce for our next lab. That's it."

Rosalie's eyes narrowed. "Trust me," she said, giving Angela a onceover. "He was fucking with you."

Angela rolled her eyes and dropped her backpack on her seat. "Whatever." She walked alone through the line and came back a few minutes later with a taco salad and a carton of milk on a tray.

Edward and Emmett had moved on to a conversation about their upcoming game. It would be the last of the season, and Angela was glad. She'd grown tired of Edward's absence at the Cullen house after school. Everything was better when he was around.

He threw away her trash with his and returned her tray at the end of the period. Then he waited for her and left the cafeteria at her side.

It was time. Finally.

Angela's patience had finally paid off.

She floated through the rest of her day with thoughts of Edward to get her through English, and then had the real thing in PE.

After school, she stopped by a baking supplies store to pick up a few things on a list Esme had given her the day prior. The moment she parked in front of the Cullens' house, Esme walked out the front door with a large white box in her arms. "Oh, good! I'm going to run this cake over to the insurance office downtown. There are cupcakes in the oven. Can you check them in about ten minutes?"

Angela nodded. "Of course."

"They should be cooled enough to ice when I get back," Esme said.

Angela was used to working in Esme's kitchen alone at times. It was nice and so much roomier than the one at her house. She sat on one of the stools at the bar and thumbed through Carlisle's latest edition of Reader's Digest until it was time to take out the cupcakes.

She placed them on the cooling rack as promised and then wandered through the empty house. The skies darkened outside the huge glass windows of the family room. Angela took the stairs, one by one, and stopped outside Edward's room. Rain unleashed from the skies and drummed on the roof above her.

Angela reached for the knob and turned. She noticed right away that Edward's bed was made and his room was as spotless and perfect as the rest of the Cullen home. He had shelves and shelves of CDs, records, and tapes, and there were stray cassettes strewn across the length of his black comforter.

She walked to the window to watch the rain and street. She swallowed when Edward's car pulled into the drive.

"Now or never," she said to herself.

She heard the front door close and then his footsteps on the stairs.

"Angela?"

She smiled and turned to face him. "Hey," she said.

There were wet spots on his shirt from the rain, and his hair was wrecked and dripping. "Um… Hey."

Angela faltered for a moment and wondered if she'd gone too far. There was no going back, though. She took a few steps and stopped right in front of him.

Edward swallowed, and his lips parted. She took it as an invitation and pressed her mouth against his. He stiffened when her fingers brushed his ribs, but he kissed her back. She started slow, with the smallest of pecks, and breathed into him when his tongue slipped into her mouth.

She almost fell when he jerked away.

"I'm sorry," he said, holding a palm out between them. "That's… I mean, we're friends, Angela. Just friends."

She touched her bottom lip with the tip of her pointer finger. "Do you kiss all your friends like that?"

Edward shook his head. "I can't do this again."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's like Maggie all over again."

"But this afternoon… The thing with Ben…" Angela grasped. "If you don't want me, why can't I be his partner or spend time with him? What do you care?"

"Ben Cheney and Royce King are dirtbags."

"Isn't that for me to decide?" Angela pushed.

"Really?" Edward ran a hand through his hair. "Okay. Did you know they like to share girls? Ben calls it a 'double stuft.' When they really want to be assholes, they pick a girl and make bets about whether or not she'll be up for it."

"No." Angela shook her head. "Ben's not like that. He's nice."

Edward's face contorted in rage. "Nice my ass. He's a fucking monster."

"Edward—"

"He attacked Bella, Angela." Edward stopped to take a deep breath, and Angela's heart dropped when his eyes watered. "Ben went to her mom's house, and when Bella answered the door, he tried to rape her. He left bruises all over her arms, but she fought him off and locked him out."

"That's a lie," Angela whispered. "Bella's a liar. Maybe it's time you faced facts, Edward. She's a lying whore. Look at how many guys she's blown through since she dumped you."

Edward closed the distance between them, tipped her chin up with the pads of his fingers, and looked Angela right in the eye. He was barely hanging on to the tears, but his voice cracked and gave him away. "Bella didn't tell me about it. Ben did." He leaned in closer, until their lips were almost touching. "And you know what else? The motherfucker bragged about it and convinced me that he'd succeeded. I had to go to Bella to find out what really happened."

"You're never going to get over her, are you?" Angela shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Probably not," Edward said. "Now get out."

"Edward, please—"

"Go." He turned his back to her and walked to the window. Rain pelted against it relentlessly. "Tell my mother how you came into my room uninvited and without my permission. You tell her, or I will."

Angela's tears fell freely. She sniffed and crossed the room. "Fuck you, Edward," she said at the door. "She's never coming back."

And in that moment, he hated Angela as much as Angela hated him.

Because, deep down, he knew she was right.

A/N – First things first. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, IRIS! This only exists because you asked for it. I hope you liked it. I can't thank you enough for all you do for me, my family, and our fandom. You're the bomb.

Now, before anyone rips my head off – Yes, Edward told Bella about this kiss (chapter 28 in case anyone doesn't believe me ;)). Also, you don't have to rip Emmett and Rosalie as GUEST. You can log in and shred them. I'm not trying to make you like them or excuse them. I get mad at them, too, okay? It's cool.

Hope you guys enjoyed this little peak into what went on in Edward's life, post fallout. It was as hard for him as it was for Bella.

This is now complete. Thanks for reading and reviewing.

See y'all around. *insert heart emoji here*

MSC