Work Text:
Of all of the potentially deadly situations I had found myself in over the past half year, I could think of no end more fittingly mundane yet peculiar than this: death by shopping with a manic pixie vampire girl.
I couldn’t say why I agreed to go shopping with Alice given my general displeasure for it. Maybe it was just my attempt to play nice with my vampire boyfriend’s family. Maybe it was because her golden puppy eyes could be classified as weapons of mass destruction all unto themselves. Maybe, just maybe, deep deep down I knew the seer was actually my favorite and her happiness warmed my emotionally stunted soul. Whatever the reason, nothing prepared me for the torturously fashionable death I was facing at the hands of Alice Cullen.
Somehow the little vampiric fairy managed to combine all of the worse parts of shopping into one. We got up absurdly early on a Saturday to go to Seattle only to spend hours and hours on end going from shop to shop with no discernible goal whatsoever. I nearly died from shock at the first store alone when I took a peak at the price tags of just what she had me trying on. I prayed to Carlisle’s god along with any others I could think of that Alice would not be paying these absurd prices for me. Safe to say, those gods either didn’t exist or they had long since forsaken me, but fortunately the vampiress took pity on my poor soul and only bought some of the items. That deal with the fashion devil, though hard fought, didn’t amount to much when she still had me try on practically everything in every store we went to. She was a force of nature, a tiny hurricane in heels that didn’t need rest or food like the rest of us mere mortals. The only reprieve I got was in the changing rooms where I could move at my own pace, but that just meant we’d be out longer, so who was really winning?
Around the 6 hour mark of non-stop activity, I finally lost all my pride and began begging Alice for mercy.
“Alice, please! We’ve been going all day. I need food and a car nap like yesterday,” I whined, dragging my feet against the pull of the super strong vampire.
“This is the last one, I promise Bella,” Alice said without even giving me a glance as she led me to the dressing rooms.
“You said that for the last five stores!” I exclaimed almost devolving to a petulant child throwing a tantrum.
“Alice! I mean it! Fucking pinky swear this is it or I will go limp on the floor. I have no more shame left,” I stressed, hoping to get her to take me seriously.
Alice stopped for the first time in hours and gave me an appraising glance. I probably looked pitiful with my pleading eyes peeking over the small mountain of clothes in my arms because hurricane Alice seemed to finally lose momentum.
“I suppose we have upgraded your wardrobe enough for now. Rome wasn’t built in a day after all,” she sighed, taking some of the clothes off my hands, “Just try on this last one and then we are done for real this time.”
“Thank you,” I said with an immense sigh of relief.
“Ugh, don’t act like I just spared you from being drawn and quartered or something,” Alice pouted, booping me on the nose with her pale, chilled finger, “You make it sound like shopping was was torture.”
“That’s because it was,” I grumbled while turning away to hide the heat blossoming on my face from where she touched me.
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that and put these back,” Alice said with feigned innocence, “Meet you in there?”
I nodded in agreement and dragged my tired limbs to the fitting room. Once situated, I changed into the items with a final burst of energy. Unsurprisingly, Alice found another outfit that was far more complicated than I was used to but managed to look good nonetheless. This time it was a simple base of dark skinny jeans and a white tank top, but Alice added layers of a black leather jacket and red flannel patterned waist skirt that only covered my back. With low block heeled combat boots to top it all off, I felt…good. Dare I say, cool. As I took myself in I noticed that I started standing taller, more confident. A feeling I wasn’t exactly used to but welcomed all the same.
A knock on the door shook me from my reverie.
“Bella? Can I come in?” Alice sang from the hall.
I opened the door and Alice’s eyes darkened immediately upon seeing me. Knowing that black eyes meant hunger, I backed away from Alice as if a little more distance would do me any good. Alice slowly took every inch I gave her, stepping into the fitting room with a lingering transfixed gaze.
“Alice—,” I spoke carefully, hoping to bring her back to her senses, but she cut me off.
“You look amazing, Bella,” she whispered with an intensity that implied more than a simple girls’ shopping trip.
That…wasn’t what I thought she’d say anyways. I felt my traitorous body blush and I looked away praying this wouldn’t break her control. I’d hate for her to hurt herself by doing something natural for her kind.
“T-thanks, but maybe we should go out into the fresh air,” I suggested.
“Why would we do that? Unless you’re already agreeing to let me buy this outfit for you,” Alice said languidly like a predator in complete control of her prey.
“Well it’s just you look a little…thirsty,” I tried to clarify for her.
Alice’s eyes flicked up to the mirror and then back to me before she giggled.
“I guess I am in a manner of speaking. But it’s not for your blood,” she said with a pointed look in her eye.
“Oh!” I managed to say, stunned by the admission. I blushed even harder at the implication but surely she couldn’t mean—
“Yes, Bella, I'm saying you look very attractive right now,” Alice interjected before I could even ask for clarification. Stupid future sight.
“You’re just saying that,” I grumbled bashfully, trying to hide just how much her words affected me.
Alice made an offended scoff, “I’m sure you know by now that I take matters of fashion extremely seriously. I would not lie to you about something like this, Bella,” Alice spoke like a solemn swear.
I averted my gaze again, but this time Alice didn’t let me and tilted my chin back with her fingers.
“You are beautiful Bella, with or without my amazing fashion advice,” Alice reiterated while staring into my eyes. I felt myself melting under the affection in her gaze, helpless to resist the compliment.
“What do you say?” Alice teased with a smirk.
“Thank you, Alice,” I replied with an easy smile that only she could pull from me.
“You’re very welcome,” she replied with a giggle and another boop to my nose.
“Now, turn around,” Alice playfully commanded with a twirl of her finger. I did as she said and faced the mirror. Her arms slid around my waist while her head found its place in the nook of my shoulder. I couldn’t remember when we had become this affectionate, this comfortable with each other but it had always felt right.
“Don’t you feel more confident, more powerful with this look?” She asked as we watched our reflections.
“I’ll admit that I do feel pretty good, but I could have done without the relentless store hopping,” I said, giving her a glare with little real heat behind it.
“I may have gone a little bit overboard,” Alice conceded while tucking in closer to me in an effort to hide from my gaze. She was truly too adorable to be legal, or an apex predator for that matter, but I refused to let her off easy.
“A little?! You have committed human rights violations in the name of fashion. I could sue for damages,” I teased her more.
“Ugh well excuse me for wanting my bestie to look her best!” She exclaimed, throwing her hands up dramatically, “but fine,” Alice said, suspiciously cool, “You want compensation? Close your eyes.”
“What? Why?” I asked, growing even more aware.
“Just close them, Bella,” she fussed back before whispering in my ear, “I promise you’ll like it.”
My eyes fluttered closed all on their own at the sweet lilt in her voice. In that span of a second, I felt the air shift in that familiar whooshing sound of vampire speed, and then I felt soft, cool lips press against my own in a chaste kiss. My whole body tingled at the brief contact of Alice’s lips and when she pulled away, I chased just a bit before catching myself.
My eyes snapped open and my fingers flew to my lips.
“Did you just—,"
“Did I just ‘what’?” Alice said looking at me through the mirror from her original position at my back, “kiss you? Yes. The better question is, did you like it?”
Of course, I liked it. It was better than I ever thought it’d be and I had been thinking of it a lot, especially when Edward quite literally and routinely leaves me wanting. How could I not? She was a supernaturally beautiful vampire after all. She practically lived in my personal space, so I was not at fault for my wandering mind. But, this…actually doing it…I couldn’t.
“B-but, Edward—,” I tried to say, making no move to leave Alice’s embrace.
“Not the question, Bella,” Alice interjected with a flirty tone as she rubbed her nose over my neck, “Did. You. Like. It.”
“Yes,” I gasped, feeling my body already surrendering to her touch.
“And would you want to do it again?” She asked with a smug little smirk.
“God, yes,” I replied, already out of breath.
“Then we can do it again,” she said, placing a kiss on my neck, “and again,” *kiss*, “and again,” *kiss*, “and again,” *kiss*.
“Fuuuuccckkk,” I shivered at the declaration. Alice merely giggled with a coy grin.
“Such a potty mouth,” Alice teased, “I can think of something much better you can do with it.”
“And what would that be?” I fired back, feeling a new type of energy fill me.
“Why don’t you turn back around and find out?” Alice taunted, and with that, I threw myself down the hole into wonderland. Besides, what was a little kissing between friends?