I lean back in my uncomfortable, plastic school chair and wonder how life could have changed so drastically in such a short amount of time. Did I really imagine Forks? Admittedly, I do have a wild imagination, but not that wild. Every day, I look down at my pencil and see flashes of wolves running. I look at the whiteboard and see snow drifting softly from a cloudy sky. I see a tall, tan boy and my heart beats faster in hope. A vain hope. Flashes of that world flicker on the movie screen of my mind, a damaged reel with dark spots and painful clarity. I will never be the same. And to think, it all started with a mall trip…
I casually strolled along with my friends Ashley, Josh and Alex when, suddenly, a creepy, pasty-white man in a dirty black trench coat stepped in front of us. Stringy blonde hair hung carelessly around a gaunt face, framing high cheekbones and cloudy blue eyes which seemed to absorb both nothing and everything. The man stared directly at me like he was trying to pierce through my bang-covered forehead to some secretive, basic essence at the center of my being. I found myself unable to look away.
"Do you wish to acquire your powers now?" He asked in a voice raspy with disuse. He continued to stare and, finally, I was able to tear my eyes away.
"Uh, no. No thanks. I'm good." I said, grabbing Ashley and Josh by the arms while half-running around the strange, random, freakish man. I had almost escaped when I felt a sharp pain in my left shoulder. My vision began to blur, turning black and grey along the edges. I heard Ashley scream as darkness swallowed me up. Then, nothing.
I woke to the most obnoxious mating call I had ever heard escape a bird's beak. It sounded like a shrieking, hyperactive child in a grocery store. Seriously? Shut up. Dear Lord. I became aware of grass tickling my arms and neck, which was really strange considering I was in my bed…I quickly opened my eyes and was momentarily blinded by piercing light streaming between dense trees. Where was I? How had I gotten there? The last thing I remembered was walking in the mall with my friends…
Two white blurs whipped past my vision and then froze in some shade underneath a particularly large tree, becoming the two most beautiful people I had ever seen. Both could have been super models, easily. They looked around for a moment and stiffened when their gazes fixed on me. I felt myself respond the same way-solid and heavy as a boulder. My ogling was interrupted by fierce growls. Wolves crept slowly out of the dense forest vegetation; there must have been seven or eight, at least. One in particular caught my attention. The rest of the wolves glared furiously with bared teeth at the figures in front of me, but one locked its eyes on me, and I felt myself shiver in terror. Its coat shimmered with grays and blacks in the sharp sunlight as we stared at each other, completely immobile. All my muscles were tensed, ready to flee at any moment but frozen in fear. The wolf turned back to the couple to snarl ferociously. It sunk low to the ground in a half crouch and slowly made its way in front of me while never looking away from the two painfully beautiful people still shrouded in shadows. I shied away from the wolf slightly as it settled a few feet before me. Was he protecting me? Then it hit me, hit me like a blazing train, like a dodge ball to the face. I was DREAMING! Of course! That meant I could mold my dream however I wanted. Maybe if I concentrated, I'd see a shop brimming with cheap, beautiful shoes.
I closed my eyes tightly and waited for my surroundings to change. A few moments passed. I opened one eye to still see two appallingly good looking people about to have a faceoff against a group of wolves. I blinked, almost missing the sudden blurs of white and grey crashing together in a thunderous roar of storms. The one wolf in front of me stayed immobile, however, while he watched the fight with wary eyes. One of the white blurs slammed a wolf to the ground, looking up at me with flaming red eyes. Fear shot through me like frozen lead. Time slowed as I felt my heart attempt to rip itself from my chest and flee when the wolf in front of me disappeared, only to tackle the pale man. I closed my eyes, wanting to wake up back home, but the blurs continued their violent, deafening war. I felt something slam into my side and I fell into darkness. The last thing I heard was the howl of a wolf.
The sound of cooking utensils clanging together invaded my conscious. I rolled over and buried my head in my pillow. It didn't smell right, somehow, though. My pillow didn't smell like my shampoo. I become aware of a deep pain all over my body, particularly my right side. I felt like I had been beaten half to death with bamboo sticks. Dear Lord…
Memories came flooding violently back in a sea of mixed senses. Soft grass, the wet smell of forest floor, terrifying ruby eyes. I sat up with a jolt, eyes flying open with shock as I frantically looked at my surroundings. I was in what looked to be a bedroom with sparse furnishings. It didn't really look lived; the white desk in the left corner was spotlessly clean and bare of any decorations except for a single vase holding a handful of daisies. The matching chair and picture frame looked handpicked, but not filled with personality. These told me nothing about the individuals who live here except they are either fairly clean or don't use this room often. I could have been in a guest room, but whose guest room? I heard footsteps outside the light wooden door. Panicked, I dove back under the covers and pretended to sleep. The door creaked slightly as it opened and I felt my heart pounding. I prayed whoever it was couldn't hear my thumping heart or my barely-smothered hyperventilating gasps of fear.
"Breakfast is ready, if you want some," A male voice said casually before shutting the door. What the heck was going on? Where was I? The last thing I remembered was a forest, a forest with wolves and pale people, but that didn't make any sense. Surely I dreamt it. It did explain why I hurt so badly, though. I cautiously crept out of bed, painfully aware of how terribly I ached; I was almost afraid to pull my shirt up to see how badly I was bruised. Clenching one eye shut, I tentatively lifted the hem of my shirt and peeked. Reddish purple splotches decorated my ivory skin along my left side, particularly my ribs and shoulder. I quickly but gently covered them again. Seeing how badly I was banged up made me feel nauseous with that just-swallowed-some-lead feeling deep in the pit of my stomach. Fear returned in forceful waves and I felt myself struggle against the tide. I needed to keep myself together if I was going to get back home. I needed to. I gathered whatever wisps of courage I possessed and opened the bedroom door, not knowing what would be on the other side. I had not known what to expect, but it wasn't a cozy living room with clean but worn furniture, and the smell of bacon lingering in the air. My stomach rumbled and clenched, a rude, insistent reminder that it had been a while since I last ate.
Voices trickled in from what I assumed to be the kitchen. I looked for something that could have been used in defense in case I was in some nut job's home who wanted to use me for freaky, painful medical experiments. I shuddered silently. I scanned the room quickly until I spotted a fire poker leaned casually against the stone surface of a fireplace. I tiptoed over, my bare feet quiet on the cold wooden floor, and grasped the rough metal firmly in my hand. Its dull surface sang a sobering and real song- a grim reminder of my current situation. I held it stealthily behind me.
"She's up" I heard a male voice murmur quietly. I silently cursed. So much for being undetected.
Through an arched doorway I saw a girl and several guys about my age devouring mountains of eggs and bacon. Three details stood out to me at the time: the amount of food, the size of the men eating, and the fact that the guys were all shirtless. It wasn't even that warm outside. But Jesus Christ, they must be eight feet tall, all of them! Even the girl! There was no way I could have escaped if they wanted to keep me there. Sickening dread weighed my limbs and I tensed up, terrified, not sure what to expect. They all turned around simultaneously to stare with curious expressions on their faces. Another woman, petite and also young, held a heaping pan of bacon, which she quickly set it down to scurry over to my side. It wasn't until she got closer that I saw deep, slightly raised scars marring her pretty face. They ran diagonally in three slashes from her right temple to left jaw. I kept my face carefully neutral.
"Hello! You've been asleep a long time. You must be starving! I saved some eggs and bacon for you." She said as she reached an arm out to touch, to sooth. I shrunk back slightly in discomfort, scanning the room again for any signs of animosity or psychosis. I still had the fire poker grasped firmly behind my back, just in case.
"Everything will be okay," She said gently, "We brought you in here."
"Where am I?" I rasped, cautious. She gave the staring guys and girl a firm look, and they turned back to their food.
"Forks, dear. We found you in the woods, unconscious." She said carefully, her eyes never leaving my face, like I was a frightened child ready to bolt. In a way, I suppose I was. I felt them listening closely while they pretended to be engrossed in their food. I heard laughter come from outside as it cut through the tense silence like an axe. Two more guys came barreling in, laughing and pushing each other. They stopped uncomfortably when they sensed the concrete tension, which was so present I could have almost reached out and touched it, if I wanted to. I looked away, feeling exposed and frightened. I felt ghost hands pull my gaze back to one of the newcomers. As our eyes met, something monumental shifted. His dark chocolate eyes widened slightly as we both froze. It felt as if the universe, composed of gears, finally shifted into proper alignment, like the opposite of déjà vu. It felt as if I was exactly where I was supposed to be, following right along with fate's carefully-laid out plan. His hair fell in front of his right eye and I had to resist the irrational urge to smooth it back into place. His dark, tanned skin shone slightly with a thin, almost imperceptible layer of sweat over rippling muscles. He was unquestionably the most attractive person I had ever seen in my entire life. I lost track of time as we both stared at each other, immobile. I had completely forgotten about the woman and leapt about a foot in the air when she interrupted. I tore my eyes away, embarrassed, to listen.
"I'm sorry, we haven't introduced ourselves! I'm Emily. That's Leah. These boys are Jacob, Quill, Paul, Jared, and Embry." She pointed to each person respectively but seemed to put particular emphasis on the final name. Embry…huh. Interesting. He was still staring at me with a dazed expression on his face, like I was some kind of American Euterpe, an embodiment of all his hopes and dreams standing directly before him. It was a little weird, actually. Plus, I still had no idea whether these people meant me harm or not. I felt more comfortable now than I did a few minutes ago. They seemed honest, but you can never be too careful. After all, I had no idea how I had gotten into the forest or why I was no longer with my friends in the mall. This brought up another question, which I asked with less hesitation than before.
"Where is Forks, exactly?"
"It's a little town in Washington, I'm not surprised you don't know it. Do you have any idea how you got here?" One of the older looking guys tilted his head curiously. I looked down at my dirty feet.
"None."
"Hey, why do you have the fire poker thing?" Asked the guy who walked in with Embry. I felt my face turn a flaming red as I scrambled for something to say. I found nothing, just mild panic and humiliation. Embry smacked the younger guy on the back of the head.
"Ow! What the hell-" He was silenced with a look. I wasn't sure what to do with myself. Should I hand the smaller woman the fire poker and apologize? What is the sort of protocol for these situations? Luckily the young woman, I think she said her name was Emily, saved me.
"Oh, you poor thing. You must have been terrified when you woke up in a strange bedroom all alone! I'm sorry I should have waited in guest room until you woke up."
"That probably would have been scarier, actually" I said with a nervous laugh. She took the smooth hunk of metal from me with care, which I relinquished with some trepidation. My last defense was now gone. Not that I would have stood much of a chance with it anyway, but still. I fiddled with my now-empty hands.
"I'll be right back," She whispered with a pat on my shoulder, "I'll just put this away." Sweet, the nice lady was going to leave me alone with the scary Titans. I looked around the kitchen awkwardly, resisted the urge to shuffle my feet, and avoided eye contact with the others. They all looked to be of Native American decent and many had their long black hair tied in a ponytail. Embry didn't, thankfully. Thankfully? What the heck was I talking about? I don't even know the guy! Someone's phone rang, either Jacob's or Paul's, and he left the kitchen to answer it. Thank God something broke the freakin' silence.
"So, uh, what's your name?" Embry asked quietly. It still seemed like he was shouting amidst the quiet clattering of silverware against plates. I jumped a bit again in surprise. I was so jittery.
"Autumn" I said, finally looking at him. He nodded as if it made sense.
"Pretty name. Unusual."
"Thanks. My parents are unusual people." I smiled slightly with fondness. Then I remembered. My parents! Oh, my God they must have been worried out of their minds! I couldn't even go on my own in a grocery store without them getting anxious! Embry seemed to sense my concern because he took a step towards me and reached out a hand.
"How long have I been here?" I asked frantically. He froze slightly, then calculated something in his head.
"Well I wasn't here when they brought you back, but I'm guessing at least half a day, if not more." Shit. Alright, so I'd been in Forks, Washington for at least half a day. I had to have gotten there somehow, and depending on how I was shipped I could have been gone for at least a day, maybe even a few. Were the police searching for me? Then I realized what a complete moron I was. Why had I not called my parents? Emily chose the perfect time to wander back into the kitchen.
"Can I use your phone?" I blurted frantically.
"Of course! It's over here." She walked over to the ash granite countertop, grabbed the phone and quickly handed it over. I silently thanked her for understanding my need to rush. I hastened back out into the living room to make my call. I hurriedly, with shaking fingers, dialed my house number and mentally prepared myself for the onslaught of relieved hysteria from my beloved, insane parents. An old woman picked up. Confused, it took me several moments to find my voice. I asked her if I could speak to Mr. or Mrs. Catesby. She told me no one lived there by either of those names, that I had the wrong number. I thanked her faintly and hung up. I tried redialing but got the same old woman as before. What was going on? Dark winds of hysteria swept through me as I tried desperately to keep hold of my wits. As I attempted to gather my panic-scattered thoughts, angry grumbling noises came from the kitchen.
"I don't want them here! She was just attacked by two!"
"Calm down, Embry. We hate them just as much as you do, but they can't attack a human without breaking the contract."
"Bella's still gunna smell like them. Ugh."
"Shuttup Jared." I wasn't sure if I wanted to know what they were talking about.
"She can hear us, you know." This voice seemed the most annoyed. They all fell silent. Well, this was weird. Then again, this entire scenario was so completely weird that almost none of it was weird anymore. Good Lord. I decided to walk back into the kitchen now that some random old lady lived in my house and I no longer knew how I was going to return home. What was I going to do?
Woot new story! I wrote this originally for a school project, but it kinda took on a life of its own. Please review and tell me what you think! I have the other chapter already written, so if everyone hates it, you guys can save me the time of posting it :P