𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙉𝙄𝙉𝙀
ミ★ ( obsidian, act one ) ★彡

     Amias can tell that Bella is beginning to get frustrated by Edward's lack of explanation. It had been a month of her persisting for an answer from him, and being constantly brushed off. It constantly looped like a broken record every day. She wasn't being brushed off by the rest of the school however; she was constantly the centre of attention following the van incident and she had Tyler Crowley following her around, obsessed with making amends. Amias could tell that she hated every second of the attention, wishing that the ground could swallow her whole—or even that the van had crushed her

Much to his dismay, they had to resort to ignoring and avoiding Bella, by any means necessary. It was to protect her; she had already seen too much. It was hard for Amias to act like he wasn't aware of her existence, except now he had to ball his fists to stop himself with starting any type of interaction. It was as if talking to her distracted him from her scent. The scent that was just too sweet; too enticing. Amias wanted to talk to her, and he would've if Edward hadn't of chosen to act so coldly towards her as his solution to this whole mess.

She would sit down beside him in Biology, and refused to show any anger at the fact that Amias would show no realisation that she was there. She would greet him pleasantly despite it, still trying to get him to talk.

He would turn his head a fraction towards her without meeting her gaze, nod once and look away. Bella sighed internally every time. That was the only contact she would have with him—even though he was less than a foot away from her, it felt like they couldn't be further apart. She was miserable because of it. All she had left was to watch him and she had begun to notice that his eyes grew darker and darker, day by day, same with the rest of his adopted family.

Mike Newton couldn't be happier by the obvious coldness between them. He was afraid that by Edward's daring rescue, it would push them further together somehow, but was pleased to see that it had the opposite effect. He grew more confident when it came to approaching Bella; ignoring Amias as he ignored them both in return.

But everyone knew it was because he was attempting to butter her up to be asked to be her date to the girls' choice Spring dance that was coming up in two weeks. It didn't take a mind reader to know that. He had already turned down Jessica's offer, hoping for a better one.

Amias was surprised to see that Mike had the balls to question her if she was going to ask him to the dance, however she refused—stating it was because she was going to visit her mom that weekend instead.

Bella looked down at her book, shifting her hair cover her shoulder to hide her face. She tried her hardest to make it seem like she wasn't aware of his presence, like he was doing to her. It was like reverse psychology. Amias hated that it was working against him. He wanted to talk to her for the longest time now. He could withstand the harshest violence and powers, but he was struggling against the silent treatment from a human girl. Pathetic.

"Bella?" He finally broke.

She turned slowly and almost unwillingly. Her face was almost weary when they came face to face, before it turned to annoyance because he didn't say anything further. So, she decided to speak first instead, "What? Are you speaking to me again?"

His mouth twitched, fighting a smile, "No, not really." He admitted.

Bella closed her eyes and inhaled through her nose, completely aware that she was gritting her teeth, "Then what do you want, Amias?" She asked, keeping her eyes closed because it was easier to talk to him with petulance rather than if she was looking into his eyes.

     Hearing his name come out of her mouth made his undead heart skip a beat.

"I'm sorry." He says, sounding completely sincere, "I know I'm being very rude. But, it's better this way."

Bella finally opened her eyes, "I don't know what you mean." She responded with a guarded voice.

"It's better if we're not friends." Amias explained, looking down at his feet, "Trust me."

"Then Edward should've let the van crush me." She hissed and disbelief and astonishment covered his face almost immediately at her words.

     Edward saving her was the best thing that could've ever happened. She's too precious to him for her to die right in front of him. That's a death he'll never be able to accept.

     "Look, Bella..." He began to plead, "I know this is hard for you. I know you want answers from Edward, but we can't... give that to you." He explains further and Bella's hardened expression begins to fall once she sees Amias' somewhat pained one, "It's to keep you safe."

     Safe? Bella thinks to herself. What could be so bad about their secret that it would put her in danger? Did it have something to do with the way his parents died?

     Questions ran through her mind at a million miles an hour. She's unsure of what her next move is because all she knows is that she wants to be near him—there's something pulling her towards him.

     "Okay." Bell relented and Amias visibly relaxed slightly, "If you're doing this to keep me safe, I'll accept no explanation than that... for now." She said and Amias smiled at her ambition for truth, "I do eventually want answers."

     "I know." Amias responds, wanting to reach for her hand as a sign of good faith but constricting himself to only putting his hands behind his back, "And I will do that one day. You have my word."

     "Okay."

     Bella's last class was gym. She hated gym considering she could barely walk straight, let alone have any hand-eye coordination with any type of ball sports. She also hates how she feels after class from what she told him. She's usually out of breath and her face is red from over exerting herself. She just wants to go home immediately and take a hot shower until she feels as if the sweat has been burnt off.

From what Edward had told Amias, both Tyler and Eric were also planning on asking the Swan girl to the dance—or rather, get her to ask them to the dance. Both of them were rather satisfied with Mike's failure and were preparing to make their moves.

Eric had planted himself besides her truck so she couldn't avoid him, and the kid just looked absolutely pitiful while he waited for her to walk out of the school doors. She had already turned down Mike, what was to say that she wouldn't turn him down too? Eric had believed that they had a strong enough friendship that would help push him over the edge as an option to be her date.

Tyler, on the other hand, was still stuck in class. They were being held back late to receive an assignment, and he was in a desperate to hurry up and catch Bella before she escaped.

Edward eyed Amias from the driver's side door of his Volvo, "You're going to do something, aren't you?" He questions, hearing the older vampire's inner turmoil for minutes now.

"She isn't interested in them." Amias mumbled as he noticed Bella on her way out of the gym, completely unaware of Eric's ambush that was heading her way, "Just stay here."

While Bella had been friendly with each of the boys, she had mentioned to them several times that she was not interested in them romantically. However, it was clear they weren't interested in taking a hint.

Her body stiffened when she caught sight of the boy waiting for her before she relaxed when she noticed Amias nearby.

"Hi, Eric." She says kindly once she reaches her truck, and there's a moment of anxious and uncertainty that hits Amias that maybe she is interested and her spouts of selflessness were sincere?

Eric swallowed loudly, "Hi, Bella." He says back, clear as day that he's nervous about something.

"What's up?" She asks him as she unlocked her truck, without looking at his frightened expression.

     "Uh, I was wondering... if you would go to the spring dance with me?" His voice broke as he asked.

     She finally looked up at him, and Amias wished that Edward could get into her mind to find out if she was pleased or taken aback by his offer. Then, she speaks, "I thought it was girls' choice?"

Bella sounds flustered, Amias notices.

"Well, yeah." Eric agreed pitifully. Amias wants to feel sympathy for him, mainly because he doesn't annoy him as much as Mike Newton does, but he can't find it in his heart to do so.

"Thank you for asking me, but I'm going to Jacksonville that day." She tells him and Eric deflates visibly in front of her even though he knows this from Mike.

     "Oh," He mumbled, not daring to meet her eyes, "Well, maybe next time." He says.

     "Sure." She agreed and it made Amias grimace. Bella noticed it immediately and she bit her lip, as if she regretted leaving a loophole.

     Eric slumped and forward and walked away, heading in the wrong direction of his car.

     Bella looked towards Amias, seeing that he was closer to him and no longer with his family unlike beforehand. He was watching her, but as if it was to keep an eye out on her and step in if she needs it. She wanted to walk towards him and talk to him— even though he told her that they couldn't be friends to keep her safe.

     But, before she could, Tyler Crowley came running towards her. He was praying to catch her before she could drive away. He was a lot more confident than the other two—the only reason why he had waited so long was because he respected Mike's prior claim to ask first.

Amias almost doesn't want to listen to their conversation, just in case she says yes despite being adamant that she's going away—but, he needs to know what the outcome is. He'll have no way to contact her to ask if he walks away because he said they couldn't be friends anymore. Tyler just had to be a bad driver on the ice that day... otherwise this wouldn't be happening and he could talk to her.

Bella noticed him running towards her and quickly got into her car as if she was trying to escape, pretending not to see him despite seeing the boy waving his hands at her to grab her attention.

Tyler slides up to Bella's window and knocks on it, causing her to jump before staring at him in confusion. She rolls down the window, "You scared me." She joked, trying to brush off the fact that she had jumped so high in her seat.

"I know." He chuckled at her before licking his lips, "Will you ask me to the spring dance?" He asked, completely believing there's no chance of defeat.

"I'm not going to be in town, Tyler." She answered him with irritation in her voice.

"Yeah, Mike said that." He responds and Amias actually rolls his eyes so dramatically, he feels like they might fall out of his head.

"Then why—"

He shrugged, "I was hoping you were just letting him down easy."

     Her eyes cooled at him, "Sorry, Tyler." She said, not sounding sorry at all, "I really am going out of town."

     Tyler accepted her excuse, "That's cool. We still have prom." He says and Amias rolls his eyes once more at his self assurance as he struts back to his car.

     Once Tyler was out of view, Amias looked at Bella, only to be amused by the horrified expression on her face at the prospect of going to prom with Tyler. Her expression was one of the funniest things he had ever seen.

     Amias returned to the Cullens once Bella started her car and started to drive out of the school's parking lot, completely safe from any further propositions, an amused expression across his face.

     "What's so funny?" Emmett wanted to know, not having paid attention to what was happening in front of him.

     Amias only shook his head in response just as Rosalie walked up to them, "Let's go!" She hissed impatiently, "Or are we still waiting for Edward to stop being an idiot?" She questioned with narrowed eyes, "If you even can."

     Edward rolled his eyes at her but doesn't say anything in return, only getting into the car along with the others.

     "What was with the security guard staring thing yesterday?" Bella questioned as soon as she sat down at their shared desk in Biology, "I thought you were supposed to be pretending I don't exist, not keeping an eye on me like a hawk."

     "I never agreed to pretending you don't exist." Amias admitted. He then laughed once he pictured her horrified expression again.

     Her eyes widened before she returned back to normal, "You—" She gasped, looking for words to say, "I don't even know what to say to you."

     "That's probably for the best." Amias teased lightly. He wants to keep it light, and casual—he doesn't want to frighten her more with the depths of his feelings.

     "So you are trying to irritate me to death? Since Tyler's van didn't do the job?" She asks and anger flashed through Amias' eyes.

     She doesn't know the lengths Edward went to keep her alive, or why he did. She doesn't know the fact that Amias had fought with the Cullens—mainly Rosalie and Jasper—for her.

      "Bella, that is utterly absurd." Amias shakes his head, "That couldn't be further from the truth." He tells her, knowing that he's only keeping an eye out on her because he feels strangely connected to her.

      "Then why won't you leave me alone?" She asks him softly and his eyes widened, wondering if this was her wanting to be done with him.

     Fuck, maybe Edward has ruined this for good with his decision to cut contact.

     He needs to respect her decision either way, and if this is the last time he gets to see her, then he needs to leave her with the right memory—the one of the human boy that there was always a 'will they/won't they?' thought surrounding them.

     "I wanted to ask you something, but I kept getting interrupted by others." He laughed, trying to keep it light, even though deep down he was feeling crushed.

     "What did you want to ask?" She asks him.

      "I was wondering if, a week from Saturday..." He begins and watches as shock crosses her face, trying to fight back another laugh, "You know, the day of the spring dance—"

      She finally cut him off, "Are you trying to be funny?"

"Will you please allow me to finish?" He asked her with a charming smile, that made her blush, "I heard you say you were going to Jacksonville that day to see your mom, and I was wondering how you were feeling about it?"

Bella was shocked before sighing deeply, "I can't keep up with you." She responds and he blinks at her in surprise, evading the question perfectly, "I thought you didn't want to be my friend."

"I said that it would be better if we weren't friends, not that I didn't want to be friends." Amias rebutted, even though he knows he's being confusing towards her.

"Wow. That's not confusing at all." She remarks sarcastically, as if she read his mind, "Thanks for clearing that up."

"I know." Amias' head dropped, "It'd be safer for you to not be my friend." He tells her again, stating into her melted-chocolate coloured eyes, "But, I'm tired of trying to stay away from you."

Bella's breathing stopped and he panicked that he had truly scared her off.

The bell then rang, signalling the end of class and he stood up with a smirk, trying to not show how much she affects him, "See you next class." He says, walking away, leaving Bella at their desk, completely gobsmacked.