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No Silly Business

Make the first move

[16]

Embry dropped his backpack near the front door of his house as he went to sit on the sofa. No one was home besides him, leaving silence to linger around. Once he sat down, he started to reflect on his day.

You're the one I like, Embry Call

Beatrice's words were playing on repeat inside his head. When she first blurted out her feelings, he thought he might be going insane. He thought he heard her wrong. He just didn't believe her. But the look on her face after she confessed made it crystal clear that she was dead serious. And either he was too slow to react or she was too flustered, Beatrice ended up quickly excusing herself from the table and running off.

He leaned into his seat, closing his eyes. The whole day he was zoned out. The entire pack had even congratulated him but he was too paralyzed to do anything. Frankly, he didn't know what to do now…

Make the first move

He gulped. Embry knew it was hard to like someone but wasn't it even harder to have a good relationship? How could he do that, especially with a girl like Bea? Instead of excitement, worry began to fill his head after learning about her feelings.

What… What if he hurt her more as a boyfriend than just a friend? He groaned, not understanding why he was so confused and frustrated by this whole situation. The only way he could calm down was to talk this out with Bea…

He jumped up, having a light bulb moment. Instantly, he grabbed his cell phone and dialed Beatrice's number (secretly thanking Kim for giving it to him) and waited as the phone rang. And at the moment, Embry Call had never been this nervous over a simple phone call.

Come on Bee, pick up

The phone kept ringing, as if it was almost taunting him.

Pick up

He started to pace around, getting his blood to flow. Feeling anxious as seconds passed by.

Pick up

The line on the other end suddenly clicked as his breath stopped, waiting for her reply. He froze.

"Hello?" Beatrice answered, slightly hesitant by the anonymous number she had seen.

"… H-Hey, Bee, it's me."

Her eyes widened as she almost dropped the phone, "Embry?"

"The one and only."

She started walking around the room, her voice instantly becoming softer on the phone, "very funny."

The tension loomed between their phone call as she waited for his reply. She could hear his breathing on the other end - it felt as if he was standing right behind her, whispering in her ear.

"Look… I want to talk with you about, you know, what just happened."

She bit her lip, "We are talking, Embry."

"No, that's not what I meant. I mean… I want to talk to you in person."

Beatrice blinked, "Oh?"

"Yeah… Look, Bee, I know I kind of suck at this but, have dinner with me tonight."

Her jaw dropped, "A-are you asking me on a d-date?"

"I guess I am."

Her heart suddenly was on the verge of melting, "It's a school night, Embry."

"What's your point? We won't even be out that late."

Beatrice closed her eyes, bewildered. What was he doing to her? She couldn't just drop all her homework and run away with him. Besides, it was only Monday and he could postpone their date until the weekend.

She sighed, "I need some time."

"Alright, I'll pick you up in an hour then."

She nodded before quickly hanging up. Instantly, she dashed towards her closet, trying to find something suitable to wear. However, she realized this was harder than it seemed. Was it a formal dinner or casual dinner? Would they get ice cream afterwards? Would he pay for dinner? Or was it a fast food type of meeting?

Thousands of questions drilled her head as she stared at her clothes. She was currently wearing some comfy pajamas as her eyes landed on a floral dress - it was perfect for any occasion. Thanking whoever bought her that dress, she went to change. After fixing her hair and putting on a jean jacket, she checked herself in the mirror one last time before she went to put on her shoes.

Would he even care for her appearance?

Shaking her head, she went downstairs and waited. And after fifteen minutes of pacing, her date managed to show up exactly on time.

Embry was dressed in a nice white t-shirt and some faded jeans as he held the car door open for Beatrice, waiting for her to get in. She looked really pretty, to the point where he had to force himself to stop ogling at her legs - it wasn't his fault, this was the first time he'd seen her wear a dress.

After she got in, he went to sit in the driver's seat, "So, where do you want to eat today?"

"I'm fine with fast food," Beatrice answered, buckling her seatbelt. She didn't really want some junky, greasy food after all the time she had spent dressing up but it was a school night and she didn't really want to break Embry's budget either.

"Fast food? What type of cheap date do you think I am?" Embry teased, watching her blush in response. He was thankful that she was being considerate but he wanted their first date to be meaningful. He decided to take her to the finest, local diner instead.

When they pulled up to the restaurant, Beatrice spoke, "Embry, we really don't have to eat here. I… I'm fine with anything else."

Embry frowned, "You do think I'm a cheap date. Look Bee, this place has good food. Trust me."

Beatrice didn't argue any further. She just followed Embry into the restaurant where they were quickly seated and started browsing through menu.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" she asked, turning pages.

Embry looked at her, "Uh… well, I wanted to talk about us."

"Okay," she replied, scanning the menu items.

Embry sighed, "Bee, I like you and you like me. But we keep running around in circles, you get what I'm saying?"

She nodded, closing her menu. Embry grabbed her hand, "You do know what this date means, right?"

What?

"It means that we're in a relationship now and…"

Go on.

"Will you be my girlfriend?"

Beatrice blinked, was this going too fast? It was only her first date and he was already asking for her upmost commitment. Yet, her heart had been waiting an eternity for this moment and without thinking logically, she looked at their hands before intertwining her fingers between his, silently answering his question with her gesture.

… Yes.

Embry felt like a weight of bricks had been lifted off his shoulders. All confusion was gone as he took in Beatrice's acceptance. She was his now. His girlfriend. His imprint.

His reason for existing

A goofy grin broke out onto his face, "You really do like me, don't you?"

"Shut up," she replied, glaring at him with rosy cheeks.

He laughed, feeling happier than he had ever been before. The rest of the date passed by pleasantly, between some chit-chat and another round of Beatrice feeding Embry her remaining portions. It wasn't until they left the restaurant and reached his car that they realized they had been holding hands the whole entire time.

Embry followed Beatrice to her house, smiling.

She was trying to open the door with her keys but she kept fidgeting. She was nervous – it was time to say goodbye.

After prying open the door she turned back to Embry, who was leaning against the wooden pillar on her front porch. Her heart stopped; he looked gorgeous.

"This is it Bee, our first date is over," Embry whispered, stepping closer to her.

She leaned back into the door, "Y-yeah, I suppose."

They stayed silent, secretly tempting each other to make the first move. After a few minutes, Beatrice gulped. Her hands found the handle against the door, all she had to do was turn it and she was safe inside. Safe from her overwhelming feelings and lucid thoughts.

Embry sensed her retreating and quickly took the few steps needed to close the distance between them. He leaned over to her ear, asking, "Can I kiss you goodnight?"

Everything around Beatrice stopped. The only thing she could hear was her rapid heartbeat and his breath, as it shifted from her ear to across her cheeks…

Closing her eyes tightly, her hands found their way on his chest, stopping him from planting his lips onto hers.

Wait!

Embry paused, watching her tense up. His lips were practically at the corner of her mouth, close to sweetness.

She let out a sigh of relief before realizing the position they were in. She looked at Embry, who was so close that she could see the specks of gold lingering in his green eyes. Her hands clenched onto his shirt, frozen.

Embry looked at her adoringly, watching her confused reactions and blushing cheeks. Apparently he had the same stunning effect on her as she had on him. Unable to resist himself, he placed a slow, sweet lingering kiss on her cheek instead.

Beatrice remained petrified as she watched Embry walk off without saying a word. His goodbye was still burning her cheeks. After a few seconds, she managed to move herself into the house before collapsing.

Her hands covered her mouth, shocked.

He almost kissed me

Unable to breathe, she sat there. Replaying the moment over and over again inside her head. Oh god, Embry Call was driving her head-over-heels crazy. And to top it off, he was now officially her first boyfriend.

A/N: I know, it's been a while. And you've probably noticed that updates won't be on routine basis anymore. Frankly, I'll try to update when I have time but sorry for suddenly leaving this story at a crucial point. Writers block is never fun.

But hopefully this update was worth the wait and don't worry, they'll kiss…eventually.

And yes, thank you to all who mentioned Beatrice was supposed to be a vegetarian :P clearly, I have forgotten that fact and will now announce that Beatrice is officially NOT a vegetarian anymore. Sorry if that offends anyone and forgive me for being a forgetful writer. I'll try harder from now on to pay attention to close details.

And lastly, thanks to any new readers who have found and reviewed this story. It means a lot.

So, review because it's my birthday? Seriously, it's my birthday today :D Anybody else born on December 7th? Let's be birthday buddies.

Review, review, review!