Ok, I did a little tweaking of this chapter. It was weak, I know. This was the first thing I'd written in ages... So, I'm giving it a semi re-do to smooth it out a little. :) 7-27-08

Chapter One--Time of My Life

So I'll taste every moment
And live it out loud
I know this is the time,
This is the time to be
More than a name
Or a face in the crowd
I know this is the time
This is the time of my life
David Cook--Time of My Life

"Bella! Let's go!" Alice could hardly contain her enthusiasm. This was a daily occurrence. Today, however, was a million times worse. We were moving into our dorm today. "Look! Here we are." She threw her arms out in a sweeping motion meant to welcome us to our new home.

"Really, Alice, it's a cinder block box with a window that doesn't open." Her excitement was not rubbing off on me. I'd been dreading this day for months. Alice has been determined that we have every experience possible while we're at college. She doesn't want us to miss anything. I understand where she's coming from, but when you're as clumsy and shy as I am, branching out tends to be scarier than imaginable.

"Well, it doesn't give many decorating options, but I'm sure I can make it work. I'm so glad you agreed to get the coordinating comforter sets, Bella. That will make this so much easier."

We dropped our first load of hand held items in the floor and pondered how we wanted to arrange the two beds, dressers and desks. We really didn't have much more space than I would imagine a jail cell to have. This did not bother Alice. All she could see were the possibilities. Once Alice gets into "designer mode" nothing can stop her.

"Hey, ladies. Glad you finally made it." Well, except for one thing. Jasper, Alice's boyfriend since I've known her, was leaning on the door jam to our room. Alice gave a small squeal and ran to give him a hug.

"I've missed you," she cooed at him.

"Hello! Bella present!" I cringed. I had grown somewhat accustomed to them being "couple-ish" as I thought of it. Usually, they did a good job of not being to overly affectionate in public.

"It's only been a week," Jasper pointed out to her as he detangled himself from Alice's small arms. Jasper was required to arrive a week earlier than the rest of the incoming freshmen due to his ROTC scholarship. He had decided sometime our sophomore year in high school that he was going to join the Army after college. I thought this suited him perfectly; his decision making and thought processes were always so meticulous.

"It felt like forever," she pouted to him jokingly. She turned to me. "Let's go get the rest of our stuff. The faster we're moved in, the quicker we start the fun." She bounded out of the room. Jasper shrugged his shoulders and turned to follow her. I sighed and fell into the procession tripping over the raised door jam on the way out of the box that was to be our home for the next year.

That night the university hosted a welcome event. I would have been content hanging out in the room with a book, but Alice, going along with the "don't miss anything" theme she had adopted, drug me with her.

The event was held in the Student Union which was located in the heart of campus. Luckily our dorm was just a couple of blocks away. The university was huge compared to our tiny hometown of Forks, Washington.

Ah, Forks. I never would have thought I would miss it there. When my mother Renee remarried a much younger and somewhat professional baseball player, I sent myself to live with Charlie, my dad, who lives in Forks. I didn't want Renee to give up her recently discovered happiness with Phil, the new husband, just to keep me in Phoenix. I was lonely the instant I moved; the sun, which I had loved before, was almost now nonexistent, it rained constantly and I didn't know anyone.

My first day at Forks High wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Alice was in almost all of my classes and refused to let me sit alone and feel sorry for placing myself in exile. People were surprised, I think, that Alice and I became such good friends so fast. Our personalities are total opposites. Alice is loved by everyone; I felt like no one knew I was there. She moves with the natural grace of a ballerina, whereas I can't navigate my bedroom without falling down. Alice looks and dresses like she could be a model. I was lucky if I ended up in clothes other than jeans and a t-shirt.

Jasper and Alice have been Jasper and Alice for a long as I've known them. It was understood, but not really discussed, knowledge that they would go to college together and then get married. They balanced each other in a way I didn't know was possible. When Jasper was looking at schools that would accept his scholarship, his only requirement was that the school have a fashion design program for Alice. Oh, and a good athletic program. Jasper is pretty competitive.

I, on the other hand, didn't have a clue where I wanted to go or what I wanted to study. As a result, I applied to a scattering of schools all over the country. Nothing really appealed to me. I waited so long to make a decision, Charlie was afraid I would end up at the community college outside of Forks. Alice was constantly begging and pleading with me to go to school with her and Jasper. She would throw reasons at me like, "Now, Bella, you know I didn't have any siblings growing up. And, now that I've found my missing sister, I can't let you go!" I rolled my eyes each and every time she said this, but never told her I didn't agree with her. Before I knew it, we were receiving room assignments, meal plan applications, and class schedules.

When we entered the student union, I was overwhelmed. There were so many clubs and organizations recruiting new members. I saw Alice make a beeline for the Design Club table, Jasper following behind her, and figured I was on my own for a while.

I wandered the room for a while, just trying to take it all in and not trip and fall over something. It had been a while before I noticed a group that called themselves Sense and Sensibility. Curious, I approached the table.

"Hi! What's your favorite?" The girl behind the table asked me.

"Um, what?" I had no idea what she was talking about.

"Book. What's your favorite Jane Austen book?"

Oh, silly me. "Pride and Prejudice."

"Me too!" she exclaimed, rising from her chair. "I'm Jessica."

I hardly got my name out before she continued. "Where are you from? I grew up in the south and people make fun of me all the time for talking so fast, but I can't help it! It's just how I've always been. I couldn't wait to leave. My boyfriend is here too, he's a year older than I am, so I just followed him. Oh, here he comes!" A tall, blond boy with spiked hair was approaching her with a scowl on his face. He was a sharp contrast to her tiny frame and wildly curly hair. "What's wrong, Mike?"

"Eric's demanding a rematch of last year's chess finals." I didn't know what would count as a chess club scandal, but I chose this as my cue to leave.

"Nice to meet you, Jessica," I called as I walked away. She didn't look up from Mike's story.

I didn't stop again till I reached the far back of the room. There, I found something I might actually be interested in joining—the Safe the Wildlife club. Wildlife was plentiful at home. Forks was surrounded by forests.

The expression on my face must have said it all because the guy hanging at the table introduced himself.

"Hi, I'm Jacob." He was tall—well over six feet. I had to look up to make eye contact. His shiny, black hair was pulled back into a ponytail. He had to be part Native American. He wore a grin that stretched from ear to ear. It was impossible to contain my grin in response.

"Bella." I offered my hand.

"I've been watching you wander this room for almost an hour now and you haven't stopped but once. Not that I'm stalking you from over here or anything!" He flashed the grin again.

I laughed. "My roommate drug me with her and ditched me as soon as we got here. That's okay with me though. She would've made me join every club by now." I smiled back. He was one of those instantly like-able people.

"Well, to ask the question you'll be asked a million times this week, where are you from? What are you going to study?"

I offered the basics. His ears almost visiably shot up when he heard I lived in Washington

"Hum, I have family in Forks, ever heard of it?"

"That's where I live!"

"Really? No way! My uncle and cousins live on the reservation there. Small world."

Before we knew it, we were playing the who do you know game. Turns out we did know several of the same people; Forks isn't big enough for this not to be possible. Jacob had even met my dad once. Which really wasn't that surprising seeing as he's the police chief. When he asked how I liked Forks--I told him I thought it was too green—he let out a whoop of a laugh that caused people to turn and stare and make me blush.

"There's green squishy stuff all over everything. That's all I saw was green, green and more green! I miss blues and browns. Brown is warm compared to mushy green." I squinched my face up at the memory. He let out the loud laugh again.

We talked for several more minutes. Finally Alice and Jasper appeared at my side and were telling me it was time to go. I introduced them to Jacob and could see Alice's mind start working on matchmaker. I'd have to talk to her about that later. I said goodbye to Jacob and left with Alice and Jasper.

"Why didn't you give him your number?" Alice reprimanded as soon as we were out of Jacob's hearing.

"What? Oh. I didn't think about it. You know I'm too shy for all that anyway. If I see him again, I see him again." I shrugged to hopefully help drive my comments home.

"Bella, the campus is huge! Turn around and go give it to him right now!" She started to turn me back towards Jacob's table.

"Leave her be, Alice." Jasper always saves me in situations like these. I gave him a silent thank you with my eyes. This annoyed Alice to no end. She started off without us.

"Bella, if you do see him again, you should give him your number." I shot him a look of disbelief. "I'm just saying." He chuckled and went to catch up with Alice.