Promise

Chapter 23: Never Before

Robyn

Bella was the queen of arranging glimmering, ostentatious, and completely over the top charity events and galas for her company. Most importantly, they raked in affluent guests and their money. While most of her events were dedicated to cancer, she organized events for domestic abuse, mental health, and all kinds of incredible causes. It came naturally to her, and it was what she loved the most about her job.

We were in Bella's bedroom a couple weeks after Christian's accident, getting ready for one such event. His arm was pretty much healed now, much to the relief of everyone around us. We all took turns stopping by and visiting him.

What people didn't know was that I stayed over every single night and ran my hands through his hair until he fell asleep next to me in bed. Every night, he slept on top of his own covers and let me crawl under them. But then, every single night, I ended up with my back pressed up against Christian's chest while he held onto me like I was a lifeline or with half my body falling on Christian's while he held me tightly. A couple days, I pretended to be asleep when I felt his fingers tracing my face, brushing my freckles.

As we did everything else, we didn't talk about it. I would leave every morning when he went to work and show up every night like clockwork. Some nights we got takeout and some nights we went grocery shopping and tried some new recipe together over a bottle of wine until the final product was just some sad drunken concoction. Then, we slept.

"Oh my god, please, little one," Bella pleaded into her sister's stomach. "Give us another little kick."

The little Hale boy was growing, and Ariadne was finally starting to show which made Bella and I very infatuated with her as we pet, rubbed, and tried to feel movement. She stood in front of the mirror, hands parked on her waist with an exasperated expression, as Bella and I clutched her stomach from either side, praying for a repeat of the little kick he gave us a couple moments ago.

"Or a high-five. Anything," I encouraged. It was to no avail.

Ariadne shook her head, laughing. "If you two are done harassing my unborn child–"

"We're not," Bella and I clipped in unison.

"–we are going to be late, so let's get a move on." She breezed past us, shimmering into her loose green gown that flowed around her. She wasn't even really showing but didn't want to attract attention to herself. Attention was not something she enjoyed–no matter what kind.

Bella, the attention-grabbing beauty, had already shoved her Victoria Secret body into a tight shiny pink gown with a sweetheart neckline. It hugged every single one of her flawless curves tightly, like it was afraid to leave her. Ariadne and I got our fair share of attention but there was only one girl who stole the show every time.

Begrudgingly, I pulled the burgundy asymmetrical neck mermaid dress Bella picked out for me and demanded that I wear. She had an excellent fashion sense, while I had none, and I knew there was absolutely no point trying to convince her to let me wear something that might let me breathe a little easier. Shoving my feet into Louboutins, Bella pulled, tugged, sprayed, and framed my hair to her liking.

"Oh wait," I interrupted when Bella reached for a beauty blender. "No concealer."

"Huh?"

"I, uh..." I flushed. "I can't cover my freckles."

She stared at me dumbfounded. "I've been telling you not to cover them for years. What changed your mind?"

I shrugged, biting my lip. I didn't lie, that was beneath me. "I promised someone I wouldn't."