Goldie (Carlisle Cullen)

two

The Lava Lounge was the cities most crowded establishment on a dreary day in March, people huddled together chattering aimlessly with glasses in hands, some still soaked from outsides downpour while others, those who had been there all evening, chuckled tipsily. Though, they were all the same in one thing, their awe of Marigold Moore. Her presence on stage seemed to light up the room in an instant and as the crowd whooped and hollered, she shot them a mere wink. She was made for the spotlight and when the music flowed, her adoration of the act seeped through.

It was mere happenstance- and endless encouragement- that Doctor Carlisle Cullen had found himself there that evening though the second her words met his sensitive ears, his head whipped around in search of the source. Carlisle no longer even bothered to toy with his glass in a false semblance of drinking it, he was frozen unnaturally as his golden eyes scanned the people clustered together around the room.

And then he saw her. She was absolutely beautiful. That was his first thought when his eyes fell upon her; Behind the beautiful voice there was an even more beautiful woman, her hair dark as night and curled finely, eyes a warm brown that glittered wonderfully under the spotlight, her heavy golden dress sparkling as she swayed slightly. And her eyes, despite all those people staring at her- found his through the crowd.

The moment Carlisle met eyes with the beautiful singer, he felt as though his cold heart could possibly beat again- as though, impossibly, it had skipped a beat. The second she smiled at him through the tune, her painted lips twitching gently, he felt absolutely and entirely human. It was a feeling he had been searching decades for, the feeling of normality, of humanity which he felt he'd long since lost. Carlisle found himself wanting to know her, to be close to her and despite how terrifying of a thought that was, it was simultaneously thrilling.

Carlisle Cullen knew the second their eyes met that he shouldn't be so selfish with her, that he should walk away right then, to move far far away where only her memory of her would linger. He knew he shouldn't even consider getting to know her, that he should allow her to continue her life peacefully because any life with his presence in- was doomed for heartbreak, he knew that if he spoke to her, even once, he would be bringing her at least one step closer to danger. However, despite that, he found himself asking the colleague at his side for her name.

"That, champ, is Marigold Moore, folks around here call her Goldie. A vision, isn't she?" Doctor Frank Terrell grinned as if having highly anticipated the asking of such a question though his younger colleague did not even notice the changing countenance- far too hypnotised by the woman in gold. Finally finding his well- constructed composure once more, Carlisle dragged his golden eyes away from the singer to land on his friend instead- the man who was the reason for their visit to The Lava Lounge on their very first shared day off in weeks.

Francis Terrell was a forty-something-year-old man with a greying moustache and wiery hair that he always managed to wear swooped back perfectly, remaining perfectly in place even as he removed his hat- it was a far stretch from Carlisle's slightly floppy curls that even now drooped down his pale forehead somewhat. Though despite the aged appearance of Frank, his eyes glittered in jovial youth, sparkling now as if he knew the most amusing secret, it was only slightly unnerving to Carlisle.

"Have you got yourself a lady, Carlisle?" Frank hummed tapping him easily in the shoulder as the vampire downed his drink in one- noticing that he had been craddling it for half an hour now. Shivering and screwing up his eyes slightly, he coughed and Frank laughed brightly, clicking his fingers for another one. "Strong stuff" the older doctor chortled.

"No, no, I'm not married." Carlisle denied calmly, shaking his head softly so that his loose curls shuffled against his pale forehead and Frank grinned as though that was somehow important to him as if it mattered in some way.

"Perfect, neither is she" Frank whistled, startling Carlisle who looked up at him with a frown. "I can introduce you, if you'd like" he grinned, taking a deep gulp of his glass as he blinked expectantly, visibly seeing the thoughts swirling in Carlisle's eyes. He was conflicted- something that Frank didn't quite understand, and that was why he had asked if Carlisle had been married, it would explain the slight pain in those unnatural golden eyes. "Think fast my friend, she's coming this way"

"She is?" Carlisle swallowed, turning around just in time to see the dark-haired woman as she leant against the bar with a bright jovial grin as she waited for service, swaying on her feet slightly as though the music was somehow inside her. There was something marvellously elegant about the way she stood and the golden dress stood out from the crowd but she didn't seem to mind the constant stares as she traced the grains in the wood of the bar with perfectly manicured nails. It was the tiny details that awed Carlisle the most, things that he wouldn't even previously have paid any mind to. One thing was for certain; Marigold Moore was something special.

"Yes"