Chapter 1:
It had been at least twenty years since he left me. I was still bleeding-figuratively, of course. I had no blood. I was still waiting, hoping he would appear out of nowhere. Of course, there was no point, he had told me himself that he no longer loved me. I had decided to move back to Forks and attend the high school there. Once again, I was alone. I was on the plane, when a young man, about my age, sat next to me. Well, my body's age. Seventeen.
"Hi, I'm Jason." He told me, grinning. Wow, she is H-O-T! I could read his mind. Now, I wish I could tune it out. I could also control emotions like Jas-. No, I wouldn't go there. I could also change appearances. I could be blond in a second if I wanted to.
"Bella." I replied looking away, ignoring him. What did I do? Sheesh! Thankfully, he didn't talk the rest of the way to Seattle. When we landed, I grabbed my small carry-on and rushed off the plane, towards baggage claim. My bag was waiting there. I grabbed it, walked towards the nearby forest, and ran all the way to Forks.
I heard a howl, and then the smell hit me. The stench of werewolf was all over. Had I passed into the Quileute residence? I didn't think so. I peered thru some trees, and sure enough, there was the town of Forks. The werewolves had invaded Forks since there were no longer any vampires there. Well, now I was here. I winced when I remembered why I was no longer aging.
I walked into the meadow, remembering Edward, half expecting him to be there. To my surprise, Laurent walked into the clearing. He seemed just as surprised. Then he narrowed his eyes, which were ruby red, and pounced on me. I felt his razor-sharp teeth pierce into the soft skin on my neck, making me scream in pain. Someone pushed him off of me, but the venom was in my system. I shrieked as an unbearable burn erupted inside of me, then I blacked out.
Something big and furry pounced on me. I rolled over, and just inches away from my face, was a huge bear-like wolf. It ran into a small cluster of trees. Then, Jacob walked out of the trees. He seemed confused at first, and then angry.
"Who are you, and what do you want?" He snapped at me. He couldn't remember me?
"Jake, it's me! Bella!" I told him. He shook his head, as if he didn't believe me.
"Bella is dead, and she doesn't have red hair." He said, choking up at the first part. Now it was my turn to feel confused. What did he mean red hair? I pulled at a strand of hair, and sure enough, it was red. My powers must have gone whack again. I quickly changed my hair back to brown.
"No really Jake. It's me. I promise." I pleaded, trying to get him to believe it. He seemed to hesitate for a second. A huge smile spread across his face.
"It's you isn't it? I knew you weren't dead!" He hugged me. "Jeez Bella, you stink!" He said scrunching up his nose.
"Yeah, well you don't smell too hot either." I said, mimicking him. "So, now that we're mortal, well immortal, enemies, can I still live in Forks?" I shouldn't be asking his permission to live here.
"Sure you can." He said grinning. "It's great you're back! I've missed you so much!" He told me.
"I've missed you too. How's-"I started to ask, but Jacob cut me off.
"I don't know how to tell you this. He's…" He started to cry. I froze.
"He's dead isn't he?" I asked him, when I regained control of my mouth. Jacob just nodded.
"After you 'died' he was alone. He quit his job and stopped answering calls. After a while, he just died." Jacob explained. My body wasn't responding. I tried to move, but nothing happened. Jacob finally stopped crying. "Bells? Hello, is anyone home?" He waved his hand in front of my face. I snapped at him. He backed off.
"Jake now's not exactly the time to joke!" I yelled at him. I grabbed my bags and ran off to my new house. As soon as I was inside, I sank to the ground and started to dry-sob. When it got dark, I finally got back up and went to go hunt. I caught a few deer and went back to the house to get ready for school the next day.
I pulled on a blue shirt and some black skinny jeans. I grabbed a pair of flats. I quickly put on some make-up. I ran downstairs, and jumped into the car that I had had brought to my house. It was a small silver Porsche. I raced off to school. When I got there, a sharp pain jolted thru me, remembering the days that I went there twenty years ago. I got out of the car and walked into the main office. There was an old lady working behind the desk.
"Hello, I'm Bella." I told her. She searched thru some papers.
"Bella Swan, am I correct?" She asked me. She is so beautiful. I wonder if my grandson would like to date her. Of course, he would go to this school.
"Yes." I said simply.
"Well, here is the map and your schedule. Give this paper to all the teachers you have to sign, and bring it back at the end of the day." She smiled warmly.
"Thank you." I smiled. Such a beautiful smile. I walked out into the rain. When I got into the class, I let the teacher sign the paper. He directed me towards an empty desk. He muttered something about sharing with 'Alice'. It couldn't be the same. No, no, no, no, no. They couldn't live here. They left me. I wanted so badly to leave. Just then, the one and only Alice Cullen waltzed into the classroom. She sat next to me and smiled warmly.
"Hi! I'm Alice. You are?" She asked me. I tugged on a strand of hair, it was blond with black tips. I would use this to my advantage.
"Isabella. Cal me B- Iz." I told her, catching myself at the last second. She sniffed the air, and grinned. Vampire! She's a vampire! Yes, Edward can finally stop making us suffer. I'm going to have to use this. Wow, she even has good taste. "Yes I am." I told her. She seemed confused for a second. You can read minds? I nodded.
"Is that it?" She asked me, clearly intrigued.
"I can feel and control emotions, and I can change appearances." I told her. A puzzled look crossed her face.
"You mean you can change into…" She looked around the classroom. Everyone was staring at us. Wow, that new girl is so hot! I bet she'll date me. How wrong that boy was. "That boy?" She asked me, pointing to the kid in front of us. I nodded. "Wow Iz, that's amazing."
"Can you do anything?" I asked her, to keep up appearances.
"I can see the future. Not as great as you." She said. I smiled.
"Are you alone?" I asked her.
"No I have a 'family'. Three 'brothers', one 'sister' and a 'mom' and 'dad'." She told me. "Are you?" Maybe, just maybe, she and Edward will click.
"Yep. Just me." I told her.
"What about your creator?" She asked me.
"He was tackled by someone, and then I was left alone." I explained to her.
"I see. Do you not like to hurt humans?" She must have noticed the confused expression on my face, so she added, "Your eyes, they're topaz."
"Ah, no when I was still a human, I knew this one family, and they were vegetarians, so I just kept up with their lifestyle." I told her. Her head snapped up when I mentioned 'vegetarian'. him. We didn't talk for the rest of the morning. She asked me to sit with her and her family for lunch. I accepted, might as well try and become friends with them again. She walked with me thru the lunch line chatting about clothes and shopping. I nodded now and then. She led me towards an empty table. I was relieved that he wasn't here yet. Then they all walked towards the table, surprised to find me here.
Who is she? Alice better have a good explanation for this. Rosalie thought. She had never really liked me.
All right! Alice brought us a human to snack on! Emmett. Figures. He would be excited about this type of thing. Wait no, she's a vampire? Wow, that's weird.
Who is this? Wow, she's so beautiful, almost prettier than Bella. Edward winced when he thought of me. Of course, he would hate me now. He's the one that left me after all.
"Guys, this is Iz." She told them. "Iz, this is Edward, Rosalie, Emmett and Jasper." She pointed to each in turn. Don't even think of taking Jazz, he's mine. I smiled, I knew the couples. I knew that Edward was alone. I knew he didn't love me anymore. Maybe he could love Iz. Maybe.
"Hello." Was all that Edward said the whole time. He seemed to be concentrating on something. He kept staring at me. But almost angrily, like the first day I saw him. He still couldn't read my mind. I got up and walked to my next class. I didn't have this one with Alice. The teacher showed me to a desk. Of course, Edward just happened to be my lab partner, again. Edward seemed just as reluctant. I can't believe she's sitting there. Where my Bella used to sit it doesn't seem right. My Bella? You're the one that left me!
The teacher started his lecture. I was too grateful when class ended. I practically ran out, the hole in my now dead heart seemed to be opening up once again. I gasped for air, clutching my sides when I was in the safety of my car. I wouldn't be able to do this every day. Alice walked over and tapped on my window.
"Are you alright Iz?" She asked me concerned. I took a deep breath and nodded. "Would you like to come over to my house today? It'll be fun, please?" She pleaded. Again, I just nodded. She danced away. I rolled up my window, and sped home. I had to collect myself before I saw him again. After a few minutes, I grabbed my car keys and raced over to their house. When I got out, my heart started to hurt again. I walked to their door. Alice was already there.
"Hey Alice." I started, before she dragged me into the house.
"You are so going to play chess against Edward." She told me. I didn't mind, I could read his mind, and he couldn't read mine. After about ten minutes, we had played five games, and I had won each time.
"Wow Iz. You're really good at chess." Edward finally admitted.
"Actually, I kind of cheated." I told him. "I can read your mind." I said sheepishly.
"Oh. Ok, that makes sense I guess." He said. "So you can read minds. Like me."
"She can also feel and control other people's emotions. And she can change what she looks like." Alice told him excitedly. He seemed shocked. "Show him Iz." She ordered. I changed myself to look like Edward.
"Wow, that's amazing." He said, clearly amazed. I changed back to my 'Iz' appearance. It was amazing that I didn't accidentally turn into Bella. "Hey do you want to go hunting with me and Alice?" He offered.
"Sure. That sounds fun." I told him. Alice was blocking her thoughts, making me angry. I could feel that she was thrilled about something. Edward and I walked towards the door, waiting for Alice.
"I just hunted. You guys go." She smiled evilly. I knew she wanted to make this a date. I rolled my eyes. She wasn't really good at pretending. Edward shrugged. He seemed to want to make this like a date. We ran out of the house, dashing into the trees, looking for the smell of prey. I could smell mountain lion, and Edward went towards that. I followed, not smelling anything else. Luckily, there were two full-grown mountain lions there. He pounced on one, and gracefully, if you can call snapping an animal's neck and sucking out it's blood graceful, killed it. I copied him on the other one. I was full already, I didn't actually need to hunt anymore.
"You done?" Edward asked.
"I already hunted last night, I don't exactly need to hunt today." I explained. He nodded.
"Follow me?"He asked. I nodded. He ran thru the trees, me on his tails. When he stopped, I collapsed, blacking out. He had brought me to the meadow. Our meadow. The place where Laurent decided to try and kill me. The place where we had fallen in love. When I was conscious again, I was staring up at the sky. Edward was standing next to me.
"Iz? Are you ok? You just sort of fell down." He seemed really worried.
"I'm fine Edward. You're always too protective of me." I told him, standing up. He was stunned for a second. Oh no, I slipped, he doesn't know that your Bella, I told myself. "I mean, I presume you are." I corrected.
"So why exactly did you faint?" He asked me.
"I was changed here, it doesn't exactly bring back good memories." I explained. That wasn't the whole truth, but it was at least half of it. He nodded.
"Yeah, my transformation isn't exactly my fondest memory either." He said. We were now both sitting on the grass. "We should probably get back, before anyone gets suspicious."
We ran back to the house as fast as we could go. When I got there, I said goodbye and got into my car to go home. Before I drove off, Alice was knocking on my window.
"Have fun?" She said, smiling innocently. I glared at her.
"Not exactly. I fainted." I knew it was pretty much impossible for a vampire to faint, but that's pretty much what happened.
"I didn't see that happening." She said confused.
"What did you see?" I asked her. She shook her head.
"No, I'm not telling you." She refused. No way am I gonna tell her he was gonna ask her out. No way.
"He was going to ask me out?" I whispered. She looked at me, clearly annoyed.
"Oh right, you can read minds. I forgot." She said. I rolled up my window and drove home. When I got there, I walked in and once again, fell to the ground, dry sobbing. It was for Charlie again, but it was also for Edward. Thru the years, I had learnt how to play piano, guitar and violin. I grabbed my guitar and started working on a new song. When I looked at the clock again, it was already 7:30.
"Crap." I exclaimed. I put on a tight red long sleeved shirt, skinny jeans, a black leather jacket and a pair of red high heels. I ran to my car and got in. I raced to school, trying to get there on time. I pulled in just five minutes before the class started. I ran all the way to my classroom and sat down in my seat right before the bell rang.
"Good, you're here! We are so going shopping this weekend. Not that your wardrobe is bad." She told me looking at my outfit with pride. I so rubbed off on her when she was human! She thought.
"What do you mean when I was human?" I asked her.
"Oh come on! It's so obvious Bella." She told me.
"Alice" I hissed. "Did you tell anyone?" She shook her head. "Good, don't. I will tell them when I feel like it. And block your thoughts from Edward please." I begged her.
"Fine, but you owe me some extreme shopping trips!" She whispered.
"I promise." I told her. She nodded and the teacher walked in. What great timing that man had. He began his lecture, and I zoned him out. I had already done this at least ten times. When class ended, a boy with blue eyes, a babyish face and brownish blond hair walked up to me. It was Mike Newton's son. The same genes I guessed.
"Hi. I'm Joseph." He told me, holding out his hand. As per usual, I ignored it. "Would you like me to walk you to your next class?" He asked me. Alice giggled, she knew who this was too.
"No thank you, Alice here is showing me around." I always had to be polite. This made him hopeful. Maybe if I ask her out, she'll say yes. I groaned, to low for him to hear. I pulled Alice out of the room. "Oh come on! Why am I always chased by those insufferable Newton's?" I whined.
"Be nice." She chided. "He's just being friendly."
"Friendly. Right." I scoffed. "More like over friendly." We walked off to our next class. When it was time for lunch, we walked over to the cafeteria. Once again, Alice was babbling about clothes. I sat down where Alice told me to, right next to Edward. He was eying Alice suspiciously, she was blocking her thoughts.
"Hey Alice, what mall did you want to go to this weekend?" I asked her, trying to strike up a conversation.
"Umm, I think there's a good one in Seattle, Bella." She said. Everyone at the table stopped what they were doing and stared at me. I tried to play innocent.
"Who's Bella?"I asked. Edward got up and left. I stared after him. Sorry Bella, I'm so sorry!
"Oops. Iz, sorry. Your name reminds me of someone we used to know." She said. I nodded.
"Whoa, now that I think about it, you do look a lot like Bella." Emmett said. I stared at him. It's her isn't it! Yes! Eddie boy will be so happy she's back!
That's Bella. I've got to say she's a lot prettier. Hopefully Edward will want to get back with her. Rosalie thought. He left me, he didn't want me. Why would he want to get back with me?
"Edward doesn't love me anymore. So, I don't think we're getting back together." I told them, getting up to go to my car. Once there, I put on some good music. I heard a knock on the passenger side.
"What do you want Edward?" I asked him after rolling down the window.
"Can I sit with you?" He asked. I nodded in response. "So are you really Bella?" He asked me. I changed my hair back to normal, and fixed my facial features. "So, how've you been?"
"Really Edward? I've been empty for the past, oh. Twenty years. Every time I think of you, my heart burns, a hole in the forming." I told him. "I loved you Edward. Then you left me, and you ask me how I've been? I've been dead. If it makes you feel better, I can protect myself now."
"I don't understand." He said stupidly. "I left you for your own good. To protect you from me. And then, it seems that everything was worse when I was with you."
"Is that really a surprise? You were the best thing for me." I told him.
"You're right. And I'm sorry Bella. I really truly am." He told me. He sounded sincere.
"Do you expect me to forgive you?" I whispered.
"No, I don't." He said.
"Well you're wrong." I told him. He seemed surprised. Then he smiled my favorite crooked smile.
"Take me back?" He asked. "Wow, I think I just sounded like a teenager." I laughed. It was true. I got out of the car, he followed. There still was a little time left before class started. He took my hand and we walked slowly to Biology. When we got there, Joseph was leaning on our table. He really did take after his father. When he saw me with Edward, his eyes narrowed.
"Hey Joseph." Edward greeted him.
"Edward." Joseph got out. "Bella, so wanna go out with me this weekend?" He asked me. I groaned to low for human ears.
"I'm actually going shopping with Alice." I told him. The teacher walked in. Joseph went back to his seat. "Want to come shopping with us?" I asked Edward. He smiled and mouthed 'sure'. When class was done, Edward walked me to my car. Joseph started to walk towards us.
"So Bella." Edward began.
"Edward, can you help me keep Joseph away?" I asked him quickly.
"Sure. How?" He asked me. I leaned forward and kissed him. That should do it. He knotted his fingers in my hair. And for the first time ever, I pulled away first. Joseph had stopped dead in his tracks. He wasn't moving. He just stared at us. I got in my car and Edward followed suit. "Well, umm. Ok." He stuttered. I grinned. I guessed that this meant we were officially back together. I read Joseph's thoughts. WHAT? Are they together? Well, that's not gonna stop me. I groaned, he was just as persistent as his dad. I raced off towards Edward and I's meadow.
"So this time, I promise not to faint." I told him. He smiled the crooked smile I loved. I was dazed for a second.
"That's a relief. You always were a danger magnet. Or at least that's what I thought you were…" He trailed off. I winced, remembering when James had tried to kill me so many years ago in that ballet studio. I sat down on the grass.
"You know, Victoria stopped hunting me down." I tried to reassure him. He raised an eyebrow.
"Really, why?" He asked. "Don't tell me you sat down and talked with her about it." He chuckled. That didn't sound like something I would do. I frowned.
"Edward." He looked up at me. "Don't be stupid. Once I was changed, I hunted her down. At first, she was furious, then she became weary, like I would want to finish her off." I explained. "She ended up just understanding. Now we're sort of…" I stopped, I could hear her thoughts. She was in Forks. Bella! I can't believe it! It's such a small world! Who's that with her?
"Bella, please continue." Edward begged.
"We're sort of… friends." I said. He hissed. "Edward! Calm down, don't make me do it for you!" I ordered him. Just then, Victoria stepped out of the shadows. She smiled warmly at me, and glared at Edward. He stood up and looked at me. I kept my face firm, my jaw set. I got up and ran to Victoria and hugged her. Her eyes were a golden color.
"Bella! It's so good to see you!" She exclaimed excitedly. I smiled, it was good to see her too.
"And you kept to the diet! It's good to see that you've decided to help humans." I praised her.
"Thanks." She said, then turned to Edward. "What's he doing here? I thought he left you!"
"He did. We ran into each other a few days ago. We're going to the same school." I told her, sending her calming waves. She took a deep breath and nodded. Edward came and his arm around my waist. It felt like I was seventeen again. Of course, technically, I was. Victoria didn't stop glaring at him while she spoke.
"So what? You're just going to take him back? After her left you for twenty years? After he told you he didn't love you?" Her voice rose as she went on.
"We're not exactly back together yet." I pointed out. "But one day, I'll probably forgive him. He's the only person I've ever loved." She looked at me, searching to find if I was lying. When she found only the truth, she sighed.
"Okay. I'll let him live." She told me, sitting down. I sat next to her.
"Let him exist more like." She grinned. "And will you not be so protective? Please?" I begged.
"Okay. Ironic isn't it?" She asked. She knew she had been like a mother to me.
"What is?" I was confused now.
"Well, the one who started out to hurt you, became the one to protect you. And the one that started out to protect you, ended up hurting you." She pointed out to me.
"Victoria! Please! You know he was trying to protect me!" I whined.
"Bella, it's alright. I can fend for myself." Edward tried to soothe me. It worked.
"Okay, but still Victoria. Stop." I ordered. She held up her hands.
"Do you have somewhere I can stay?" She asked me. "I'm here for a while."
"Of course! You can stay with me." She eyed me.
"Are you staying with them?" She whispered. I simply shook my head. "Okay, sure!" I got up and Victoria followed.
"Bella, where are you going?" Edward called after me, racing up to my side. I rolled my eyes.
"Really Edward you're too protective. I'm taking Victoria home so she can drop off her stuff." I explained slowly. "You can come if you want." I offered. Edward took my hand, but stayed as far away from Victoria as possible.
"It's okay, I don't bite." She joked. "No wait. That's a lie." Edward muttered something under his breath. We made it to my house without anyone dying. Life was going to be interesting for a while. I showed Victoria to one of my spare rooms. I let her settle in and grabbed my book bag to finish my homework. High school is so easy.
"Bella, how long is she here for?" Edward complained. I looked at him sharply.
"You should know!" I snapped. "Just, please coexist, for me?" I begged him. "She's a really nice person, if you get to know her!" And for a few months after that, they were friends. Or almost friends.