corpse bride → EDWARD CULLEN

𝐭𝐰𝐨

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐎
— 𝒷𝑒𝒻𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝓌𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝑒𝓃𝒹 —

     𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐕𝐄𝐈𝐋 𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐒 against her dying waves, tainted by aged soil and ripped with the brutality of her death. Lennon did not mind that the wedding dress would forever adorn her own corpse — when in moments that she felt as though her living memory was slipping from her fingertips, the sentiment of her mother's gown brought back even the smallest amount of comfort. And on the darkest nights when she believed that her true love would never come, she would clutch to the material as if it offered a power that no other could understand. But to all who awaited their peace six feet underground, their fate was never too far behind. Perhaps Edward would stay for her, trapped in the underworld that she considers her safe haven, with the knowledge that he could never return to what his life once was. As the woman admires his profile with the eyes of a doe, she believes that she could do this forever — bask in a moment that should mean nothing while considering it her lifeline. His high cheekbones and sharp lips, calculating eyes that seem to grow darker than their original honey tone, with a kind aura that could match the gentleness of any of the gods that stare down from the heavens.

Her beloved was far more simple than her current beau . . . and yet she still finds that his memory, tainted by aggression and hatred, haunts her even in the afterlife. But she refuses to think of him as she reaches out to take Edward's firm hand into her soft one. Their skin, as if crafted for one another, molds seamlessly as she smiles to him.

"What was your life like?" Lennon questions the pale man, noticing how he tenses when their fingers intertwine. The young woman frowns, tugging her hand away in an effort to avoid making him uncomfortable. "I apologize," she murmurs softly, averting her eyes to the limitless buildings in the distance.

Though the vampire knows he would feel his heart clench in guilt if he were still alive, Edward feels nothing when he glances back to the corpse. "It's alright," he assures her — although her touch was more soothing than anything he could have ever imagined, he despised that she was so easily drawn to him. He hated himself for allowing her to believe in such falsities: that he had the potential to stay, that he is living. Having only been here for a few minutes, Edward has already dug himself into a grave that he will one day have to climb free of . . . and when the time comes, he will have to break her heart in the process. "I have an adoptive family that can be trying at times, but I enjoy their company. Two brothers, Emmett and Jasper; two sisters, Rosalie and Alice; and my parents, Carlisle and Esme."

Despite having been rejected, Lennon grins at his soft words and tugs the train of her dress as they continue on their stroll. "I imagine that I would get along with them well. You were adopted?"

"I would consider it an adoption," he chuckles under his breath, noticing her intrigued eyes. "But they're just as much my family as the one that came before them."