Twilight: Chapter 5 Summary & Analysis

Bella is in such a daze after her conversation with Edward that she barely notices that she’s late for class. Though Mike and Eric are a bit curt with her, Mike still invites Bella to the beach this weekend—it’s supposed to be nice. The rest of Bella’s morning passes in a blur. She’s frightened by the time lunch rolls around; how is Edward going to act? But Edward isn’t sitting with his siblings. Disappointed, Bella buys a lemonade and sits down with Jessica. A moment later, though, Jessica hisses that Edward is staring at Bella and is sitting alone. Once Bella meets Edward’s eyes, he beckons to her. Bella makes an excuse to Jessica and hurries to Edward.

Bella sits down, awed by Edward’s beauty. She remarks that them sitting together is odd, but Edward says that if he’s going to hell, he should “do it thoroughly.” He doesn’t explain what he means, but he does say Bella’s friends are mad that he “stole” her. He says that he might not give Bella back and then explains that he’s giving up. He’s tired of trying to stay away from Bella, and he’s not going to be good again. Bella is extremely confused and asks if they’re friends. Edward says they can try, but he won’t be a good friend. If Bella is smart, he says, she’d avoid him.

Bella looks down, more confused than ever. When Edward asks what she’s thinking, she says she’s trying to figure out what he is. Her theories are too embarrassing to share. Edward deems this frustrating—but Bella snaps that it’s frustrating when someone speaks cryptically, saves your life “under impossible circumstances,” ignores you, and then never explains anything. Bella hates double standards. After a few tense moments, Bella asks Edward if, in the future, he’d warn her before ignoring her again. He agrees, but he asks for one of Bella’s theories in return.

After some coaxing, Bella asks if Edward was bitten by a radioactive spider. He scoffs, but Bella vows that she’s going to figure it out. Edward asks her not to—he could be the bad guy, not the superhero. Some things suddenly make sense, and Bella asks if Edward is dangerous. He just stares at her with an odd look, and Bella says she doesn’t believe he’s bad. Edward says Bella is wrong. Bella stares at Edward in silence until she realizes the cafeteria is nearly empty. She’s going to be late for biology. Edward says he’s not going today and tells Bella goodbye.

Bella races to class. Moments later, the teacher comes in with some boxes. He hands out supplies and explains that they’re finding out their blood types today in preparation for a blood drive. Bella puts her cheek against her desk and tries to stay conscious. She tells the teacher she knows her blood type and is feeling faint. Mike offers to take Bella to the nurse. Outside, Bella asks to sit down. She slumps until her cheek is on the concrete. She hears Edward’s voice asking Mike what happened. Edward insists that he’ll take Bella to the nurse, and before either Bella or Mike can protest, he scoops Bella up.

Edward seems amused that Bella faints at the sight of blood. He carries her to the office and into the infirmary, settling her on a cot. When the nurse tries to send Edward back to class, Edward insists that he’s supposed to stay with Bella. Just as the nurse returns with an ice pack for Bella, the secretary, Ms. Cope, says there’s another fainter coming in. Feeling better, Bella hops up and stands aside so that Mike can help another classmate in, who is bleeding from the science experiment. She complies when Edward tells her to leave the room immediately, and leaves himself. Outside the infirmary, she explains that she listened to him because she could smell the blood, but Edward is skeptical. When she describes the smell as rusty and salty, he stares at her with an “unfathomable expression.”

Just then, Mike appears to check on Bella, and she insists she can’t go back to class—she’ll just faint again. Mike looks disappointed, but he asks if she’s coming to the beach. Bella assures him that she’s coming and notices Mike throwing Edward dirty stares. Finally, Mike leaves. Bella groans that she has gym next, and Edward says he can fix that. He tells Bella to sit and look pale. Then, Edward softly tells Ms. Cope that Bella isn’t well enough to stay at school; he’d like to take her home. Ms. Cope agrees.

Outside, Bella asks Edward if he’s joining the beach group. It isn’t until Bella shares that they’re going to First Beach in La Push that Edward declines. As they reach the parking lot, Edward grabs Bella’s jacket to stop her from going to her truck. He promises that his sister Alice will drop the truck off later; he’s taking Bella home. Edward drags Bella to his Volvo by her coat and she stumbles against the car. Angry, but aware that she can’t outrun him, Bella gets in.

Edward cranks the heat and turns the music down. Bella is surprised that it’s Debussy’s Claire de Lune, one of her favorite songs. Edward reveals that it’s also one of his favorites. As they drive, he asks Bella what her mom is like. Bella describes Mom as pretty, eccentric, and her best friend. Sounding frustrated, Edward asks Bella how old she is. Bella says she’s 17, but Edward insists she sounds older. Bella laughs that Mom jokes that Bella was born middle-aged. For that matter, she notes, Edward doesn’t seem much like a 17-year-old, either. Edward asks if Bella approves of Phil, and if Mom would let Bella make her own choices about partners. They joke that Bella can’t choose someone too scary—and Edward asks if he’s scary. Bella says he could be, but she’s not afraid. 

To change the subject, Bella asks Edward about his family. Curtly, he explains that the Cullens adopted him after his parents died. Then, he says he has to hurry back to school to pick up his siblings. He wishes Bella a good time at the beach and says he’s skipping school tomorrow; he and Emmett are going hiking. Before Bella gets out of the car, Edward tells her to be careful—she seems like the kind of person who “attracts accidents.” Bella hurries out of the car, annoyed, and slams the door.