Author's Note: Okay, so this is my first story (reviews and critic much appreciated - hint, hint) continuing after Breaking Dawn. Nessie is now sixteen - almost through with her childhood forever - and if being a teenager isn't hard enough, she gets the extra load of having to keep her family's secret while they're keeping secrets of their own, her furry friend Jacob suddenly acting weird around her, a mysterious stranger names Nahual, and the Volturi lurking. (And most of us would just like to pass math.) Tell me what you think:
I glanced up at the clock out of boredom, as it slowly announced in quiet ticks, that time actually was passing in this purgatory. Though, it definitely didn't seem that way. It seemed some unseen force intent on driving me mad was dragging more like every second out infinitely longer. While the rest of the students were concentrating on the teacher's lecture – or at least trying to – I could feel myself nodding off. This wasn't really a good thing. If I couldn't take going through high school the first time, how was I possibly going to make it through this retentiveness the rest of my existence? It was beginning to look like I wouldn't.
I had always loved to learn, and it was a lot more fun to learn about things when you lived with a family that had been around for a few centuries, and had been there when a lot of the things in the history books happened. But love of learning aside, after having to listen to lecture, after lecture on material that you'd picked up easily in the first year of your life made school pretty boring. I knew it wouldn't work, but I was secretly hoping that that if I stared at the clock long enough it would move faster. No such luck. If anything it was moving slower than before.
"Miss Cullen!" Mr. Varner, my Trigonometry teacher called loudly from the front of the room, to me in the back row.
I wish wished that I could have told him that I would have been able to hear him, even if he'd been whispering. The vampire side of me came along with enhanced senses, one of the positive factors in my mixed up life.
"Yes?" I asked, my voice tranquil as it ran down the aisle, back to the teacher. If he thought that he was going to catch me off guard with his question he was nuts.
"Will you please come up here, and demonstrate for your fellow classmates how to solve the equation on the board, since you seem to find the clock so much more interesting than my lecture?" Mr. Varner asked.
His resentment towards my lack of attention (or me in general, I wasn't sure which), was poorly masked, if even attempted. I stood up, and walked down the aisle towards the blackboard fighting back a smile. The problem on the board would've been difficult for the average human, but it was no problem for me. I could have given him the answer in Portuguese, while running up and down the highway, but then again, the vampire-thing made those things easy for me as well. Mr. Varner was also the only teacher that I knew who would get upset whether you got the answer right or wrong. The man desperately needed a social life.
I walked forward quickly, and snatched up the piece of chalk that Mr. Varner held out towards me. With deliberate slowness (for me anyway, trying not to scare anyone), solved the equation. Exactly one minute and 7.5 seconds later, I turned to face my scowling Trig teacher.
"Very good, Renesmee." He muttered, glaring at the blackboard.
I didn't bother to hold back my smirk as I made my way back to my seat.
"Great. Another perfect Cullen." I heard him add under his breath before continuing his lecture.
I grinned at that, too. Almost all of the teachers at Forks High School were convinced that my dad, and aunts, and uncles perfectly maintained 4.0's during their attendance there had been the result of cheating, rather than a century or two of prior knowledge. Never a wrong answer. They'd always liked to say that there was no better way to learn than seeing something first hand. Not that they had very clear memories of their human lives (or in Aunt Alice's case, at all). I could tell that no one thought that the apple fell far from the tree, though – even if the official story was that my parents had adopted me after my dad's nonexistent brother and his wife had died in a car accident.
Finally, fifteen minutes later, the bell rang. Mr. Varner stood mumbling angrily as he wiped the chalkboard clean, and everyone hurried past him, not wanting to rattle his cage, and end up with detention.
I followed their lead, pausing only to gather my books, and grab my jacket off a row of hooks just outside the classroom, before veering left towards the parking lot.
"Hold it, Nessie!" a husky voice called from behind me as I hurried down the frosted sidewalk.
Turned feeling a warm hand catch my elbow, and looked up to see my friend, Jacob Black, smiling down on me.
"Jake?" I asked smiling, but confused. I'd just had been heading down to La Push to see him.
Aunt Alice had planned an elaborate anniversary bash for Grandpa Charlie and Grandma Sue, assigning Jake, his father, Billy, and me to help distract him. Sue's son, Seth, and her daughter, Leah, were in charge of distracting their mother, so Alice would have enough time to set up. She wasn't sure if it would work yet, because of me, and the La Push wolves being blind spots in her visions.
Jacob grinned. "Your dad said that Blondie was still working on your car when she and Emmett left, and asked if I could pick you up, since you were heading to La Push anyway." He explained.
I rolled my eyes at him. "I wish you wouldn't call her that."
"Who? Blondie? Hey, it's a lot better, than leech, or bloodsucker." Jacob replied dismissively.
"Or you could just call her by her name." I suggested, as I had many times before.
"Which is?" Jacob teased.
"Are the fleas distracting you, dog?"
Jacob laughed. "Sorry, Ness', but as long as she calls me 'Fido', the nickname stays. Personally, I think it suits her."
He dogged the elbow that I threw at his ribcage. "Relax, Nessie. You still have a little bit of aging left to do – plenty of time to get wrinkles."
He pulled me towards his Rabbit, parked towards the back of the lot, and opened the door for me. I stuck my tongue out at him as he shut it behind me.
I waited patiently – as patiently as I could by that point – for Jacob to climb in the other side. He ignored my haste, and took his time starting up the Rabbit. I swear, if I weren't part human, and not as strong as him, I would so kick his butt right about now. Jacob seemed to realize this because he had plastered a huge grin on his face.
"Why were you at the house? I thought that you picked up everything that Alice hadn't carted over to La Push already last night when you came over for dinner." I said.
"What? Oh the house? Alice had a few other things she needed me to pick up for the party." Jacob replied.
"Liar." I hoped he didn't really think that I was stupid enough to fall for that.
"Ouch, that hurt, Nessie."
"Are you sure it wasn't just another flea bite? You know you should use that medication Rosalie bought for you, it would help." I quipped.
Normally I wasn't this irritable, but the party planning had overly excited Alice, and that resulted in me not getting enough sleep. Which had lead to the combined force of my parent's tempers igniting in me. I think that was the only trait they regretted me inheriting from them.
"Sure, sure." Jacob agreed.
My eyes narrowed. I grabbed his hand and showed him an image of some guy getting killed in an old horror movie called Crosshairs. And despite my intent to make him tell me whatever he was hiding, he started laughing hysterically.
I pouted at him in frustration while I waited for him to start breathing properly again.
"How is that funny?" I demanded.
"Can't tell. I've been sworn to secrecy." Jacob said, while pretending to lock his lips, and through away the key.
"By who?"
Jake shrugged, and looked out the windshield as if it were suddenly the most interesting thing in the world.
"Dog."
"Bloodsucker."
"Flea bag."
"Leech."
"Fido."
And that's it for now. Review? Please? Pretty please with your favorite actor/actress AND a cherry on top?