Episode Eighty-one: Batty Page

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Next: Episode 82

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Episode Eighty-one: Batty Page

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It was the final day out filming for almost a month with Seth and Tyler. They would help me film cooking videos or pop by the house if Edward had time off and was up to it, but we wouldn't be going out and doing anything fun for a long time. They would be focusing on their own videos for a while to get ready for the launch of the new group channel. Everyone was excited about it.  

I made us a light breakfast after we exercised together. It felt so nice to be doing normal things together. For the next few days, Edward would be doing stuff to prepare for the movie, but he would be home at a reasonable time every night until he started filming on April first. 

The first video of the day the guys were less excited and more nervous about filming, but it was for a good cause.  

"Hi! My name is Bella, and I'm here with Eddie and Tyler to do something a little different today. We're at the Children's Hospital Blood donation center in Los Angeles, and we're here to donate!" 

“Today, we’re going to learn why it’s so important to give blood, show you just how easy it is, and how even a big old pansy like me can handle it! So, who’s getting stabbed first? Not it,” Eddie said with a big smile on his face. I snorted quietly. 

“I guess that’s me,” Tyler pouted. He didn’t like needles, but he handled it just fine.  

We had already made sure everyone was cleared to donate. I went next, sitting in the chair while I spoke to the nurse. 

“So, do you know your blood type?” She asked me curiously.

“O negative.”

“Oh, me too!” My boyfriend said from beside me. He was holding my hand as she stabbed the other arm. 

I grimaced, taking a deep breath. “Well, you know what that means, right?” I asked as I leaned my head back against the headrest.  

“Mm, what’s that?”

“Actually, it means a couple of things. First, it means that both of our white European ancestors survived the bubonic plague. O blood types were resistant to it. It’s part of the reason so many white people have O blood. Second, we can give each other blood. And organs. But I’m pretty sure your liver is useless after Sydney. And third, it should be easier for us to get pregnant when we do try. I’ve done an annoying amount of research on the subject.”

His face instantly grew brighter as he looked me over warmly. “Oh, really?”

“Yup. Good thing I got that stupid IUD,” I said in a challengingly little voice. 

He chuckled softly, smirking a little bit as he scrunched up his nose. “You didn’t have to rush out and get that,” he whispered to me so I could only hear it. He was clearly joking. 

I lifted up my left hand to look at it, bringing it to my eyes. "Mm. My eyesight may be going in my old age, but I don't see anything shiny. Do you?" I showed him my hand playfully, wiggling my fingers. He took it and brought it to his lips to lightly kiss and smiled slightly. I tugged gently at the hair on his chin with a smirk of my own, making his smile turn warm as his eyes shined at me. "Come here." 

He leaned in and kissed me, my fingers still on his cheek. It was very light, just a tender little moment between us. 

"Should I film you two making out?" Seth asked sarcastically. Tyler was sitting in the corner, drinking a can of soda and eating a snack cake the donation place offered him for giving his blood. He was feeling a little dizzy and needed the sugar.  

“We’re not making out with needles in my arm,” I complained to the camera. “He’s being a very loving and reassuring partner. He’s just very effectively distracting me. Shut up.” 

Seth blew a raspberry at me. I blew one back. 

"Well, can you distract me just the same?" He asked me teasingly, bringing his big fist to my lap so we could hold hands. I nodded, leaning my head back and closing my eyes as I got a little dizzy myself. I was a tiny woman and didn't have a lot of blood in my body. It rather felt like they were taking it all.  

“I am so glad that I am not the one driving,” I mumbled, my ears almost fuzzy with the crackling of blood rushing through. “I’m feeling a little spacy.” 

“We’re just about done. Just another minute more,” the nurse assured me. She was wearing brightly colored Easter themed Hello Kitty scrubs. They were amazingly cheerful and perfect for a children’s hospital. 

“Shall I distract you some more?” Edward asked to get my attention gently. I nodded my head slowly. He leaned forward so that his elbows were on the armrest, still holding my hand in his. He brought my fist up and lightly began to kiss my knuckles, one at a time. “Hm, let’s see. Well, actually, speaking of blood types, Jasper is O negative as well. We’ve donated together before.”

"I can't use his liver either," I breathed. He chuckled again softly. I swallowed as I tried to think. "Alice's is B positive, and she tells everyone if she gets a chance." 

“Well, that fits Ms. Mary Alice,” he laughed lightly.

“It does,” I gasped the last word as she slipped the needle from my arm. “Ow.” 

“You’re up next, boss,” Seth said from behind the camera with a wicked grin. He always enjoyed watching his friends suffer, especially when they could all be giant babies when they wanted to be. Tyler was perhaps the least whiny among them, but he still had his moments. 

They got him all set up in the chair, wiping his arm with a swab to clean his skin. Honestly, he looked a little green as he waited to be poked. I sat very close to his head in the rolling stool and began to stroke his silky hair as they prepped his arm with the long rubber band around his thick muscle. He held my gaze as the thick silver needle pierced his skin, pain flickering in his pretty green eyes. 

I leaned my lips close to his ear and began to whisper, “I’m so excited about all our plans for the future.”

He let out a little breath, a quick smile tugging at his lips as licked the bottom one. "Yeah? Which ones? Any in particular?" 

“Well,” I stroked his temple, with my lips still very close to his ear, “in the near future, I’m excited about getting to dress up and watch you win some awards.” He flashed me another small smile. “And I’m psyched about going to see you actually act on set. I loved watching you record. You’re so talented. I think you’re going to be amazing. And I’ll be thrilled to be filming dumb shit videos with you once you’re done shooting again.” He laughed at my words, his head leaned back on the rest with his eyes closed tightly. I kissed his ear and whispered just for him, “I’m excited about being your wife one day.”

His cheeks flamed, and he brought his free hand up to brush his fingers over my chin, his smile brilliant.  

“If I didn’t want to throw up, I’d kiss you again,” Edward said in a strained voice. 

“Please don’t throw up,” Tyler begged. “If you do, I will.”

“Close your eyes, breathe in through your nose. Out through your mouth,” I whispered soothingly as I stroked his hair again. “You’re going to be okay.”

"I know. I know. I just... I hate this so much. I'm sorry. I do. I won't put that in the video, and I will donate again. I always do. I just hate this so much," he whined to no one in particular. "Ow, fucking monkey balls." 

When he was done, he sat on a chair with his head between his legs. I rubbed his back while someone got him a soda and something to put in his stomach.  

“Are sure you can even handle another tattoo?” Tyler asked him a bit sarcastically. 

“Tattoos aren’t this bad. They don’t make my head swim. Damn.”

“Let’s hope that I don’t ever need your kidney,” I teased lightly. “I don’t think you could handle that kind of suffering.”

“I’d give you my heart if you needed it,” he muttered almost distractedly while he locked his fingers at the back of his neck, hard breathing still. Seth passed me the soda with a straw. I rubbed his shoulder to get his attention. “Oh, bless. Thank you.”

He had two cans of Sprite, a bag of potato chips, and a Snickers before his stomach finally settled enough that he wasn’t dizzy anymore. We sat for a while in the waiting room to give him a little time. The nurses didn’t want him to leave until he was feeling better. You could still see where his cold sweat had made his hair just ever so slightly damp.  

Just as we were about to leave, a tall skinny Middle Eastern woman with two teenagers came into the waiting room to go towards the blood testing area. The entire family was very well-groomed. The kids were perhaps fourteen or fifteen, one girl and one boy. The boy was younger and wearing a clean soccer uniform while the young lady looked very sleek in a cute baby blue sweater and flower-patterned pants. Her pretty yellow hijab matched it. We walked maybe a couple of feet from them just as we were about to get to the double doors. As we did, the young man's eyes got huge, and he grabbed his sister by the arms. 

“It’s EDDIE!” He hissed at her loudly, shaking her by the shoulders violently and dramatically. “I love your videos and games so much!” He shouted at my boyfriend excitedly. 

“Thanks!” He beamed back. 

“What?” The girl turned and looked, less than a foot from me. “Oh, my god! You’re Bella! I love you!” 

And then she threw herself at me. She was already a lot taller than me, her skinny arms wrapping around me totally as she pressed me to her bony shoulders. 

“Oh!” I squeaked in surprise, quickly hugging her back. “Hello there, sweetie!”  

“Rayhan! What are you doing?!” Her mother said in surprise. “I am so sorry! Get off of her! You just don’t grab strangers!”

“No!” I laughed, pulling back to look at the girl. “Don’t be sorry. It’s okay.” She was practically bouncing in place. 

"Can I take a picture with you and Eddie? Please?" She asked quickly. I looked back at my boyfriend, who was smiling widely at me. He was loving what was going on.  

“Of course, you can!” He answered as he came to stand by me with his hand on my shoulder. 

"But you got to tag me in it if you post it anywhere. I love your hijab and how it matches your makeup, and I want to show it to my friend. He would love that yellow so much," I told her with a smile. "And your eyeliner looks fierce." 

“Thanks!” She hugged me again before then hugging Edward too. He gave her a big squeeze, lifting her feet up off the ground a little bit to make her laugh. We took a couple of pictures with her and her brother. Seth and Tyler were in them, too. 

"Would it be okay if I got your autograph?" She asked then pulled a notepad from her big purse covered with pins. Edward took it from her wordlessly, quickly signing his name before giving it back. He did it all the time, and it wasn't awkward at all for him. 

 Then she handed it to me. 

“For real?” I asked in surprise as I slowly took it from her fingers. 

“Yeah. Is that okay?” She asked worriedly, her eyes wide as she nervously waited for me to reject her.

“Um. Yeah. Of course, baby. I’ve just never been asked for my autograph before.” I signed my name on the page beside Edward’s elegant signature. My hand was actually shaking. 

This had been a moment that I had dreamed about as a child but never imagined as an adult it would happen for any reason. Especially for the first time in my mid-thirties. 

I almost felt like I was going to cry. I gave her the notebook back and hugged her again. 

Edward took my hand as we walked back to the car. He was glowing. “What?” I asked curiously when he opened the backdoor for me. He leaned over and gave me a big kiss on my cheek. 

“My little star,” he whispered warmly in my ear. 

When he got in on the other side, I leaned into him so I could put my head on his shoulder. I shook it before looking at him. "That was kind of crazy." 

“Get used to it, my love. It’s only a matter of time. Just you wait and see,” he promised. “That will be the first of many.”

Afterward, we filmed at a bakery that specializes in fancy cookies with ornate royal icing designs. We got to play with icing again. Both of us made a mess this time, him more so than me though. I wasn't a very good artist, and my hands weren't steady enough for the tiny details. But if my delicate fingers couldn't handle it, then his massive mitts certainly couldn't.  

I was pretty sure he ended up getting it in his hair somehow. We were both going to need a shower after our long day. 

We grabbed a quick dinner of sandwiches and soup, eating outside on the restaurant patio since it was such a lovely spring day out. It was getting close to dusk, which was perfect for what we were doing next.  

We stood outside of the Bat Sanctuary in the fading light with the director to chat in front of their cages and building. I was so excited about what we were about to do.  

"Please tell me that there are baby bats in there and I get to play with them," I chirped. "I love bats." 
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“Absolutely! We are currently housing over twenty-five species of bats. We have many babies in need of a little attention and dinner. And though we try to rehabilitate most and release them back into the wild, we have some pretty friendly permanent residents. Including our mascot, a flying fox named Batty Page that we’d like to introduce you to,” the woman in scrubs said to me with a big smile. She saw how truly jazzed I was.

“Seriously?!” My voice might have gone up a few octaves. “Batty Page?”

"Yup. And she loves cuddles, scratchings, and honeydew. So, if you want, we can start with nursing some babies, and in a few minutes, Ms. Page should be ready for visitors." 

“I knew you’d love this,” my boyfriend chuckled to himself when we walked inside. “It combines your love of animals and creepy things.”

"You're making fun of me, but you're annoying right." 

“I know that I’m right. That’s why I picked it out.” Then he pinched my ass since there was no one behind us to see. I squeaked and swatted behind me, slapping at his hand hard. It just made him laugh. He was in a good mood and having a lot of fun. 

That was the moment that it fully dawned on me that this was why he wanted us to move to Los Angeles so bad in the first place. We were going to have so many wonderful days like this and the ones before. It was always fun and never felt like work. We were going to get paid to play with our friends and maybe do good at the same time. It just loudly clicked in my brain. These moments were perfect, and the only thing that could have made it better was if Jasper was with us as well. 

Edward loved feeding the baby bats almost as much as I did. We got to feed six types, all of them wildly different from one another and very cute. He was surprised at how fluffy they were. His grin when he held five tiny babies in his palms was adorable, especially as he spoke to them in a baby voice. 

Next, we went outside to the outdoor habitats, to a large square one in particular. A single orangish bat was hanging from the branches of the tree in the center. She looked at us with wide happy eyes, her little ears beginning to wiggle as soon as she saw us with a bowl of fruit and flowery treats.  

The director lifted her hand up to rub between its ears, and I swear it smiled. "This is Ms. Batty Page. She is a super rare giant golden-crowned flying fox. She is native to the Philippines and is frugivorous, meaning she eats mainly fruit. She was found injured a few years ago in the middle of LA. We believe she might have been kept as a pet and she either escaped or someone released her into the wild. Ms. Page sadly has a tiny hole in her wing that would make it difficult to be re-released into her native home, and she is obviously too friendly." 

I reached up and could barely touch her head with my fingertips. She stretched out to me, rubbing her tiny muzzle over my fingers as she continued to wiggle her ears. 

Wordlessly, Edward wrapped his big arms around my thighs and hoisted me up easily. He rubbed it’s belly while I scratched her head. She enjoyed it so much that she gave a long all over body shiver and yawned happily, blinking slowly as she stretched out her wings for a moment. 

“I love her so much. I one hundred percent don’t want one as a pet, but, like, I totally want to keep her,” I cooed at the big fluffy bat. 

“Would you like to hold her?” The director asked. I nodded my head so vigorously my curls bounced around my face.

Carefully, I took the flying fox once I was on my feet again, and it hugged itself to my chest with her smiling face right on my heart. 

"Oh, my god. I am so happy right now. I'm cuddling a big bat, and it likes it. Oh, my god," I gushed, rubbing it's back. "Thank you for picking this out for me. This is so cool." 

“Well, if it makes you this happy we can visit every animal sanctuary and zoo in the US. And Australia,” he chuckled, rubbing his fingers lightly over it’s spread out wings. “You should put some of them on the charity list.”

I grinned a little. "I think you're right. We can, though? Really? You're enjoying this, too?" 

“Of course, I am,” he chuckled again. “Seeing you this happy would be worth it alone but... But love… Did you not see the super cute babies I got to hold? Who wouldn’t want to do that?” 

“I love your enthusiasm so much,” the director said with a sweet little laugh. She offered him a piece of fruit to feed Batty while I was holding her. “You coming out and talking to us will hopefully be a great boost to donations.”

He smiled at the woman charmingly. “I hope so.” 

“Is it okay if I take a selfie with Ms. Page?” I asked. 

“Go ahead!”

Of course, we all took turns taking pictures with her. She loved it all because she kept getting fed fruit that she liked. I sent my selfie with her and Eddie to everyone. Alice, Rosalie, Demetri, Jake, Rachel, Rebecca, Esther, Chloe, Mrs. Lettie, and of course, Jasper. Edward sent them to his sisters. 

“Alright, we have one more stop on our tour!” The director said cheerfully as she brought us to a huge holding pen. “So, this is where we keep our teenagers. This group is getting used to the outside world just a little bit before we let them go. We have a mix of all the native bats of California. We’re going to bring them some more snacks.”

Snacks this time was bugs. Lots of bugs. And the bats were excited about it, swooping and flying around us. 

“Ah, Jesus,” Edward jerked back automatically when one whizzed by his head. 

“Doing okay there, boss?” Tyler said in a chuckle from behind his camera. 

Edward looked around for the bat that seemed most interested in him. “I’m not scared of them. I just don’t like things-” He ducked again, his eyes getting a little wider when it dove past. “It’s things flying around my head.”

“They won’t hurt you,” the director assured him. 

"Oh, I know. I just-" he ducked mid-sentence again, making me laugh. "It's right by my ears." 

I covered my mouth to hide my wicked smile. “It’s because you’ve got that frosting in your hair,” I teased. “You smell good.”

"Probably," he laughed. One flew past him again, and he automatically jerked back. You could tell by his face that it wasn't on purpose. "I can't make my body stop. Jesus, No-" he ducked a little again. I pressed my lips together to keep from laughing.  

“They’re trying to figure out if he’s a good fruit tree to nap in,” Seth laughed quietly. 

I saw one graze his cheek with its wing. Edward’s eyes got frightfully wide as he jumped. “NO! No means no, Mr. Batty!” I burst into hysterical laughter, covering my face with both my hands as I cackled at my jumpy boyfriend. Then one landed on his back. “AH! Fuck!” 

“Oh, it’s got cute ears!” I laughed as I got a closer look because him being jumpy didn’t scare it off. 

"That is a pallid bat! We really like these because they eat poisonous scorpions, but they also like crickets and sometimes even cactus nectar." 

“Cool, cool, cool,” Edward said in a rush. “Please, get it off.”

The director took it off with a little smirk, holding it so I could give it a look and a pet before she let it go. 

“Thank you so much for allowing us to play with your amazing bats today. I hope everyone takes the time to donate, even if it’s a dollar or two. We need bats for so many reasons besides being adorable,” I said as we left the cage. 

“Yeah! Me too! Link to donate in the box down below.” Edward pointed at the camera. 

He still had a big smile on his face when we got home from our amazingly full day. He pulled me into his arms and tried to go for a kiss, but I leaned my head back. "Let's go take a shower. I think we need to get cleaned up first." 

“Mm, good idea,” he agreed. “Let me run to the gents first. And I’m kind of hungry. Want to order something afterward?”

I looked at him in surprise. “You don’t want me to make you something instead?”

“I always do, but it was a long day for you, too.”

“Mm, that’s true. Want to order something I can’t make? Sushi?”

Edward bit his lip as he considered it briefly. “Oh, yes. Sounds good. But I bet you could make sushi.”

“Sure, if someone taught me how,” I answered. He took out his phone and began to type as he walked towards the bathroom. “Are you typing ‘learn to make sushi?’” He nodded his head, still walking. “If we do that we should do it from the fish market to the table. Maybe talk to some experts. Also, we could learn sushi etiquette.” He just kept nodding as he disappeared behind the door. 

I stripped out of my clothes and laid on the bed to wait for him, checking my phone as I did. I had a ton of messages in reply to my Mrs. Batty Page selfie.   

Both Mrs. Lettie and Esther both said, ‘Aw, how cute!' Then they complimented my appearance. They both said I looked very happy. Chloe sent a bunch of heart-eyes emojis with the gif ‘it's so fluffy I could die.' Alice replied, ‘SKY PUPPY!!!!’ 

Jasper’s was, “I’m jealous of a bat.”

I quickly took a picture from my position, nude, on the bed, and sent it to him. “Don’t be. You can do it with my shirt off soon.”

“If I say I’m jealous again, do I get more random tit pics?”

“You could just ask for them.” I sent him another picture, this time with the pillow over my head and just of my chest. 

The next message popped up instantly. “Thank you. lol, I'll keep that in mind for when I'm not at work. I miss you both.”

“We miss you, too. All I keep thinking about is how it will get even better when you’re here. Soon though.”

My phone beeped again, but this time the message was from Jake. It was a picture of him and Quil at a bar somewhere with a beer. The message read, "Our dumbass cousin wants to know where he can get one of those?”

I laughed, “lol the Philippines.”   

“Really? Your job is super cool, sis.” 

“It really is. My whole life is, actually," I agreed. I put my phone on the bed, sitting up when Edward came out of the bathroom. He was chuckling at something on his phone, and I knew he was talking to our boyfriend, too. 

Looking up with a smile, he asked, "ready?" 

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