Jasper threw the ball back at Alice and she showed her gleaming teeth at him.
Damn she is so attractive when she pitches, Jasper thought.
I began ignoring Jasper's thoughts quickly after that. I didn't need to be distracted from the game. Alice brought the ball back to her waist. She threw it with great force again and I was prepared. Emmett hit the ball with such strength that the aluminum smashed into the ball making a sound so fierce that it reverberated off the trees. It sounded just like the thunder. I caught a glimpse of Bella before I took off running. Her face looked stunned.
The ball suddenly flew toward me at a ferocious velocity. It went whizzing by me at lethal speeds and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to catch it. Bella had distracted me with yet another one of her expressions. I hurtled through the woods, jumping over downed trees, hopping over rocks until I caught up with the ball. I put all my strength into my leap as I jumped and caught the ball while grabbing onto a branch and swinging down to the ground.
With immense speed I ran back to the clearing, ball raised high and a smile prominent on my face.
"Out!" Esme yelled to Emmett's disappointment.
Don't worry, I'll get you back... he threatened.
Bella had a bewildered expression. I heard Esme explaining what happened. "Emmett hits the hardest, but Edward runs the fastest."
Jasper was next to bat. He already knew that throwing one towards me would be a mistake and was going for a ground ball. He hit the ball and it bounced off the ground. Carlisle caught it and started running to beat Jasper to first base. They collided and sent another thunderous noise through the night's air.
Bella was sitting on the grass and jumped up with a look of concern on her face. I laughed harder than ever at her expression.
"Safe." Esme called out.
We continued to play until the other team had three outs. We switched positions and I was at Bella's side in a quick motion that she almost didn't see.
"What do you think?" I asked in excitement.
"One thing's for sure, I'll never be able to sit through dull old Major League Baseball again," she smiled widely.
"And it sounds like you did so much of that before," I laughed.
The thrill of the game and the desire I felt when I was around Bella had me feeling high.
"I am a little disappointed," she said teasingly.
"Why?" I asked, perplexed.
"Well," she grinned, "it would be nice if I could find just one thing you didn't do better than everyone else on the planet."
She thought I was better than everyone else on the planet. I was soaring. I didn't think anything could remove the smile that seemed to be permanently plastered on my face.
I'm going to have to have a talk with her about filling your head with non-sense, Emmett guffawed stupidly.
You're oozing love over here. You're up lover boy, Jasper joked.
"I'm up!" I told Bella while heading to the plate.
We continued to play for several innings when several things happened simultaneously. I had bent down to get into the catching position, Carlisle had walked up to bat and Alice gasped in horror while she shrieked in alarm in her mind. I brought my eyes to hers as I saw what she was seeing. Terror rose inside me as a large dead weight fell through my chest and into my stomach.
Three vampires were running in our direction, curious about playing ball. The next series of visions had me scrambling to Bella's side in terror.
Edward, no! Alice thought while her vision continued as one tall vampire caught Bella's scent on the wind and attacked. In her vision Bella didn't die because we prevented him from sucking her dry but she had been bitten. Only a part of a second had passed and I was at Bella's side.
Get her out of here now! Alice bellowed from her mind. My brain was in limbo because I saw the other outcomes too.
Everyone was saying Alice's name alarmingly in their heads but Esme was the first to break the silence. "Alice?" she asked, her voice strained.
"I didn't see - I couldn't tell," she mouthed almost soundlessly.
I felt Bella tense up as everyone flew rapidly to her side in protection. Bella knew - she had to know. She was always so observant. Everyones thoughts were jumbled in confusion and alarm. Panic burst inside me like poisonous gas.