So first off, yes, I borrowed the synthetic blood idea from True Blood (which, by the way, is an AWESOME show). Unfortunately, I can't think of a cool name for it. So if anyone while reading this or just in general can think of something, please message me. I'm up for ideas and I'm sure there are plenty of more creative people than me lol
I hope you guys like this!
Disclaimer: Belongs to Stephenie Meyer
I hated Forks, Washington. It rained constantly, was too small, and the only view I got from outside my house was forest. Not exactly exciting. And did I mention it rains? All the time. There isn't one day that goes by it doesn't freaking rain. Stupid town. I miss Phoenix, at least there was actually sun out there. Here, I'm not sure if there is a sun anymore.
My mother, Renee, forced me to move here after she and my father, Charlie, had reconciled. I wasn't holding my breath. Renee was too childish and Charlie was too serious. I never saw how they got together in the first place. Anyway, they forced me to move back here when I was 16. That was five years ago, and I still hated every second of living here. My parents were still together for now, but I was still waiting for that to go downhill any second.
"Bella! Do you want some dinner?" My mother called.
I sighed. "Yeah mom."
I closed the magazine I was reading with the fake, too skinny girl on the cover and threw it in the trash on the way downstairs. Charlie had never moved out of the house they had lived in when they first got married, and I still had the same room I did back then. The wall paint was white (boring) and the room only consisted of a bed, a stereo, and a computer desk my father had put in when we moved back. He had even gotten me a laptop, but bribery doesn't work on me.
Renee smiled at me as I walked into our small kitchen and sat down at the table.
"I hope you're hungry." She said cheerfully.
"I am." I replied.
Charlie, who would kill me if I called him that to his face, walked in then. My father was chief of police in Forks, so when my mother and I had moved in, we were the talk of the town for awhile. It had been quite annoying to be stared at and whispered about, but I had just chosen to ignore it. High school was never my thing anyway.
"Hello Charlie!" She said happily, grinning like a child promised ice cream.
Charlie smiled and kissed her cheek. I tried not to roll my eyes. "Hello darling. Bella."
"Hi." I replied as I dug into the meatloaf my mother had cooked.
"How was work?" Renee asked as he sat down.
"It was alright, kind of quiet."
How surprising for a small town like this. I tuned them out as I looked at my parents. Every one said I looked like my mother, but I always thought I looked more like my father. My mother had a longer face than I did, short brown hair and wide brown eyes. She was looking rather pale nowadays, since we saw no sun ever. Charlie had short brown hair also, cut short to his head and brown eyes. He was quiet and didn't talk much, unlike my mother who could talk your ear off. I took after my father with the talking thing I figured.
"So then she told us that her husband had just completely passed her, not paying attention at all!" My mother was saying.
I tuned them out again and looked out the window at, surprise, trees. While the green was a nice change from practically living in the desert, it got old after awhile.
Finally, I finished my dinner and excused myself. I don't think my mother had stopped talking or even noticed as I got up and headed back upstairs. I walked into the bathroom and took a bath to have something to do. Another thing about living in a small town, there was never anything to do. Ever. We always had to find our own things to do, and that wasn't always easy. Or legal.
After my bath, I put my long, brown hair up in a towel to try and looked at myself in the mirror. I knew I had plain features: plain brown eyes, plain nose, plain small mouth. As soon as the novelty of me being the new girl had worn off, the guys hadn't paid a bit of attention to me in school. But I hadn't cared much, the boys were too immature and only interested in one thing. Not like that ever changes as they grow up though.
After washing my face and teeth, I headed back into my bedroom and opened my laptop. I signed onto the internet and saw one of the only people I still kept in contact with from high school, my best friend Halleigh Woods, was on Yahoo Messenger.
Hey.
Ah the technology of talking to someone from your computer.
Hey Hal. What's up?
Not much. You?
Same. Avoiding the parents.
Ha ha. Why am I not surprised?
I know.
You wanna go to Port Angeles with me tomorrow?
Why not.
You're not working?
Nope thankfully.
Cool. Pick you up at 2.
K.
I talked to Halleigh for another ten minutes before signing off. I never could stand being on the computer for very long. After turning off my computer, I grabbed a book from the mess on my floor and opened it to where I was. I stretched out on my tan bedspread and escaped to a fantasy world of where the only problems were what the girl was going to wear to prom. If they only knew.
I was just finishing putting my hair back in a ponytail when the doorbell sounded through the house. I headed down the stairs where Charlie was in the living room, about to get up.
"It's Halleigh, I'll get it."
"Where are you two headed?" He asked.
I rolled my eyes. Since he didn't have any criminals to interrogate, he chose to do that to me.
"Port Angeles for some shopping."
"Be safe." He told me, raising his eyebrows slightly.
"I will. Bye." I told him and opened the door.
Halleigh had long, blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She was an inch or two taller than I was, but we were about the same size. She was mostly always happy and cheery, which always made me wonder how we became friends in the first place.
"Ready to go?" She asked, showing her perfectly straight and white teeth.
"Yep." I replied, grabbing my purse.
I followed her to her black Mustang convertible, a gift from her doctor father, and climbed in. The tan leather upholstery stuck to the back of my legs. Why did I wear shorts? I frowned as I moved my legs so they wouldn't stick so much and looked over. Halleigh who was wearing a bright green t-shirt and khaki shorts smiled at me.
"Don't start. I don't want to hear your bitching today."
I rolled my eyes. "You'll hear it anyway."
"Somehow I'm not surprised." She replied as she pulled out of the driveway and headed to the neighboring town.
Forks was so small, the most we had was a couple of restaurants, so we always had to travel to Port Angeles to do anything. Luckily, it wasn't very far away.
"So Mike called me last night." Halleigh said, breaking our silence as she drove.
"What'd he want?"
"He said he missed me and blah, blah, blah." Halleigh rolled her eyes.
"Please." I replied with a sigh.
Mike Newtown was Halleigh's on again, off again boyfriend. Right now they were off, but he still called her all the time. He was quite annoying.
"You know you should really date one of his friends, he's got a couple of nice ones."
"I bet." I snorted.
"He does, Bella. You should hang out with us sometime and meet them."
"I think I'm alright." I replied. "Does this mean you guys are dating again?"
"I don't know. I'm supposed to hang out with him tomorrow."
"Halleigh." I sighed.
"I know, Bella, but he really is a good guy when you get to know him."
"If you say so."
"I do." She said.
We arrived in Port Angeles a few minutes later and she stopped at the local mall. I frowned as I unstuck myself from her leather seats and grabbed my purse as we headed inside. We went into all the shops, Halleigh having to try something on at every store. She even forced me to try on clothes too, though I hated trying on clothes.
"Let's get some dinner." Halleigh announced a few hours later.
Looking at my watch, I saw it was past seven already. I nodded. "Sounds good."
We ate in the mall, getting a table and eating as we walked everyone walk by us. Every time a couple would walk by, Halleigh would sigh sadly and watch them with envy.
"Just get back with Mike already." I told her.
"You just don't know what it's like, Bella. It's hard to have someone there one day, and then the next day they aren't."
"I guess." I shrugged.
We finished our food before heading into yet another shop. Halleigh ran into a friend she knew and I decided to take that time to walk around the mall by myself. I walked into the CD store, spying a group of boys looking at me and looking away once I caught them. I rolled my eyes and kept looking at the CDs until I got bored and headed out. Next door was a gadget store and I saw the group of boys again. Ignoring them, I walked out after looking around and headed into a clothing store Halleigh hadn't hit yet.
When I noticed the group of boys were there again, I walked out, trying not to walk too quickly. Experimentally, I walked into a lingerie store and sighed in relief when they didn't follow me. Of course, when I walked out, there they were standing in front of a different store. I tried not to look back as I walked past people, but I couldn't help but sneak a glance or two. The boys were still behind me and I could feel my heart starting to pound in my chest. Everywhere I went, they followed. I had no idea what they could possibly want from me, but I was too much of a coward to turn around and demand an answer.
Running out of places to go, I walked out the doors into the parking lot. It was already dark and as I walked, I realized this was probably not the smartest thing I had ever done. It wasn't like I had drove there, so getting in a car and speeding away was not happening. Not to mention, Halleigh was still there , and I wouldn't just leave her anyway. Oh yeah, Halleigh. Why didn't I think of just going back to where she was anyway?
I turned around once I crossed the parking lot only to find the group of boys still behind me. I started walking faster and heard their footsteps pick up as well. I was almost full out running by the time I reached different buildings, and cursed the fact I never stayed in shape. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going, definitely not looking at street signs, and I only prayed I didn't get lost. The traffic seemed to thin out as I kept walking, but I didn't have time to think about that. The boys were still behind me, though they seemed to be keeping a distance. What did these people want from me? I swallowed at the possibility of what it could be, and forced myself to keep going, even though I was already tired.
As I passed a space between buildings, I cursed realizing it was a dead end alley. Definitely didn't want to go there. I was thinking about jumping out in front of a car to get help, but I also didn't want to risk getting hurt. Charlie would have a heart attack. Of course, if he knew about this he would definitely be freaking out and never let me leave the house again.
I turned quickly, stealing a glance behind me and seeing the guys were still a distance away, but where they could still see me. Behind these buildings were trees, which didn't surprise me, but was actually a relief. I could hide from them in there. When I heard their footsteps echo off the buildings, I turned and ran into the forest. My heart was pounding in my chest with adrenaline and I was almost gasping for breath, but I didn't care. I needed to get away from them.
It was dark and hard to see and I tripped over practically invisible branches and other things. I only succeeded in going a few feet before I finally fell over a huge fallen branch with a grunt. I laid there for a few seconds, my knees and palms were aching when I landed on them, and I was sure I cut my hand. I held my right hand over my left, the injured one, but when I heard branches break behind me, I knew I had to move. Jumping up, I tried to get moving. The wind from when I ran was causing my vision to blur, making it even harder for me to see than previously. Luckily, it was a full moon, and the moon light did help a little. But not much.
Suddenly, and out of nowhere, a hand reached out and grabbed me around the waist. When I went to scream, another hand covered my mouth.
"Shh." The person whispered in my ear.
My heart was pounding in my ears, making it hard for me to hear, but a few seconds later, I heard leaves rustling. I tensed against the person who held me and they held me tighter. I tried to calm my breathing, but it was hard. Finally, when my heart and my breathing started to slow, I could hear better. I heard muffled voices that sounded farther away than they were previously. The hand was taken off my mouth and I was let go. I let out a breath of relief and turned around, my eyes widening.
The man in front of me was taller than I was by a few inches and had wild, tousled bronze hair that gleamed in the moonlight. It didn't occur to me until that moment that the hand that had covered my mouth had been ice cold.
Vampire.
The vampires had made themselves known the year before after rumors of their existence had been circulating. After a women had shown a local TV crew pictures of one, fangs out and all, the vampires were left no choice but to admit they existed. They had been met with some animosity and some were accepting. There had also been lots of protests against businesses who had welcomed the vampires, but unfortunately for the protesters, it was against the law to not serve them.
"They are gone now." The man said, his voice velvety smooth.
I nodded slowly, still unable to take my eyes off of him. I realized it was impolite to stare and forced myself to talk.
"Thank, thank you." I breathed, still slightly out of breath.
"Do not thank me." He replied.
"I don't understand why they were after me." I told him.
He looked away. "I do not think you would want to know why." I shivered. I had some idea. He looked back at me. "Are you cold?"
"No."
He was staring at me, even in the dark I could tell he was, but it didn't make me uncomfortable like I thought it might. I was surprised to find I was as comfortable talking to him as I was any other human. Of course, he wasn't human at all.
"You cut your hand." He noticed. I pressed my palm into my leg, hoping he wouldn't go after me or something. "I will not hurt you."
Strange enough, I believed him. "What's your name?"
"Edward."
"I'm Bella."
We were silent again. I wished I could get a better glimpse of him under light. I was curious to see what he really looked like.
"You are not afraid?" He asked.
"No." I said, shaking my head.
"You know what I am." It was more of a statement than a question.
"A vampire."
"Yes. You should be afraid."
"But I'm not."
"I do not understand. Most humans, they run away when they see us."
"Well I'm not like most humans."
Silence again. I was so fascinated by this man, I didn't want to leave. Even if he was a dangerous creature of the night that could kill me before I could blink.
"You should go. Someone might be looking for you."
Halleigh. That's right.
"Yes I guess I should. Thank you for saving me."
"It would be wise to stay out of the woods. There are worse creatures out there than those boys with sick minds. Other vampires might not be as kind."
"But don't you guys have a fixed diet?"
"That doesn't quite quench our thirst like a human." Edward told me. I could see he was smiling wryly.
I decided I didn't want to dwell on that and sighed as I looked around. "I don't even know how to get back."
"I will take you if you would like."
"That would be very nice of you, Edward." I said, smiling at him.
I followed him through the woods, glad he kept a pace I could follow. I heard vampires were fast and wondered if it was killing him to have to walk at a human pace, but he didn't seem bothered at all. Finally, we reached a clearing. I was surprised to find out we were behind the mall. I turned to ask how he knew where I needed to go, but shook my head.
"Thank you, Edward." I said to him again.
I could see him better now under the street lights. His skin was extremely pale and I noticed he had intense green eyes. He was very skinny and didn't look like he was much older than 16 when he was turned.
"It was no problem of mine. Stay out of those woods." He told me.
I turned when I saw a car's headlights, but when I turned back around, he was gone.
Reviews are so greatly appreciated! :)
