Disclaimer: I'm not Stephenie Meyer, I don't own any of her books and characters. I do own my own characters and my story.
This is my second fanfiction. It's set when Bella is struggling to choose between Edward and Jacob, which is during Eclipse, but I probably won't have anything from Eclipse in my story.
My mind was a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions, multiplying as the plane flew closer and closer. I hadn't been to Forks for years and years, but now I was going to live there with my Dad, Charlie, and my twin sister Bella.
Bella had moved to Forks a couple of years ago because we didn't get on at all. Unfortunately, after my Mum remarried, she got lonely because she stayed home to be with me, while Phil, her new husband travelled around for his 'work': playing baseball. That's why I was moving.
The last time I'd seen Bella, just before she'd left for Forks, we'd had a huge fight that had taken months of e-mails to resolve. When we were kids, we had been like normal siblings, but by the time we turned twelve, our fights were increasing in length, about anything and everything. When we didn't live in the same house, we were actually quite close. Our parents hoped that, now that we were older, we were more mature and wouldn't have anymore major disagreements.
At least we weren't identical twins. That would be horrible. I shared Bella's chocolate eyes, pale skin, and heart-shaped face but that was where the similarities ended. My hair was so dark it looked black, slightly wavy, and reached my shoulders. I was a bit shorter than Bella, something that she had always used to her advantage. I still had a smattering of freckles, only visible if you looked very, very hard at my face. Another difference between Bella and me: she couldn't play sports. I wasn't the best at most sports, but I was a fast runner, which everyone thought was strange due to my lack of height.
I didn't quite know what to expect of life in Forks. Despite all our fights, Bella and I kept up a good e-mail correspondence but she didn't actually tell me much. I was a lot more talkative than Bella, so I just rambled on about anything I could think of.
I was jolted out of my meandering thoughts by the bump of the plane touching down onto the tarmac.
As I walked off the plane, pulling my hood of my raincoat up, I heard my name.
"Talia!"
Well, the shortened version of my name. My real name was Natalia, but it was such a mouthful in conversations so everyone called me Talia instead.
"Talia!" Bella waved frantically at me from where she and Charlie waited in the rain. Despite our previous disagreements, I felt a smile spread across my face. I was actually glad to see my sister.
The drive to Forks was beautiful. All the beauty of the greenery speeding past refreshed me, as I chattered to Bella. I could tell that Charlie was getting annoyed, but I was a natural chatterbox. At least, that's what I told my teachers whenever I got caught talking during class time.
Unlike Bella, I didn't mind the rain or snow, though the only reason Bella didn't like snow was her balance problems. I was so glad that I hadn't inherited those. Imagine falling over all the time in public! So embarrassing, it made me cringe at the thought.
Bella and Charlie left me alone to unpack when we arrived at my new home for who knew how long. I let out a long sigh, and half-heartedly put some of my clothes away.
I had abandoned my unpacking to lie on my bed, dejectedly staring at the ceiling, when Bella bounced in. She tripped on her way in, and grabbed my tall floor light to steady herself, pulling it over on top of herself and ending up on the floor anyway.
"Oops, I'm so sorry!" she cried, getting to her feet and returning the light to its original position, blushing. "I forgot to tell you before that Jacob and Billy are coming over for a welcome-home dinner." Seeing my expression, she added "you remember the Blacks, don't you?"
I shook my head. "Nope, not at all."
Bella looked slightly disappointed. "Oh. I suppose you haven't been here for ages. Anyway, I'd better get back to the kitchen."
She left without an accident, which I considered a miracle, until I heard a thud.
She must have fallen down the stairs, I thought.
"You alright?" I called.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine!" Bella answered distractedly.
Not long after the stair incident, I heard a car pull up outside. Probably the Blacks. Reluctantly, I got off my bed, yanked a brush through my hair a couple of times, checked in the mirror to make sure I looked presentable, and headed downstairs.
I went into the living room, where Charlie had managed to unglue himself from the TV, and was talking to a guy in a wheelchair. I assumed this was Billy. I instantly liked him, but only because I was able to look down on him.
"Do you remember Billy, Talia?" Charlie asked me.
I shook my head, smiling. "I should, shouldn't I?"
"It's okay," Billy laughed, shaking my hand.
I heard voices coming from the kitchen, so I went to investigate.
Bella was standing by the fridge, leaning against it to support herself as she shook with laughter.
Another person was positioned similarly in the doorway. This must be Jacob. My eyes lingered on his happy face, the way his eyes crinkled at the corners as he laughed, the gleam of his teeth that contrasted with his smooth russet skin.
I dropped my head, embarrassed, warmth spilling across my cheeks. What was wrong with me? I was normally confident around people, especially boys, but I'd never felt like this before.
Bella noticed me, and, with a lot of effort, stopped laughing, and introduced us.
"This is Jacob. Jacob, this is my sister, Natalia."
"Hi, Natalia." Jacob said, his voice slightly husky. I looked back at him to find him looking back at me. His eyes were warm and friendly.
"Just Talia," I corrected, half reluctantly. The way he said my name made it sound beautiful, but it would look weird if Jacob called me Natalia when nobody else did.
"Talia." Jacob repeated. "Got it." He grinned at me. I was startled, and automatically grinned back at him.
Throughout our exchange, Bella smiled, seeming pleased that we were getting along well, though I couldn't imagine someone not getting on with Jacob.
I could tell that she liked Jacob, more than just as a friend, and Jacob liked her back. I sighed internally. If Jacob had been free...
"I'd better go see if Charlie and Billy are hungry yet." Bella said, sounding like she was a million light years away. As if in a dream, I saw her walking out of the kitchen.
"So, Talia, how are you liking all the rain?" Jacob's voice cut through the hazy fog surrounding my mind, bringing me back to reality.
"Sorry, daydreaming." I said, looking up at him from under my eyelashes, a small smile on my lips that I normally reserved for difficult boys. Unlike Bella, I could flirt, and I couldn't help having a go with Jacob.
If Bella came back, she would be furious, and it was likely that another sibling feud would begin. But I didn't think about the consequences of my actions. I just wasn't the sort of person who logically thinks and plans ahead for anything.
"What do you think of Forks?" Jacob asked. "Sick of the rain yet?" We both glanced out the window, streaked with raindrops, and back at each other at exactly the same time, then burst out laughing.
Once I'd recovered, I answered "I don't really mind the rain much. I actually like it, believe it or not. And Forks is al-right." I stretched my last word out.
Bella walked back into the kitchen briskly. "Time for dinner!" She strode over to the cupboards, and rummaged around, no doubt looking for plates and cups.
"Good, I'm starving!" Jacob said, glancing over at me. His stomach growled. I laughed again, and he joined in.
Bella turned around, carrying a stack of five plates.
That was a dangerous combination!
Jacob obviously had the same idea, and hurried to Bella's side, taking the plates from her.
"Thanks, Jake," she said, gazing up at him affectionately. I didn't miss the returned affection in Jacob's eyes, nor the way that Jacob's hand touched hers a lot longer than necessary.
I felt a sudden rush of jealousy. Did Jacob like Bella more than he liked me?
But, I'd only just met Jacob, whereas Bella had known him for years. I shouldn't be jealous of my own sister, especially when I could see how happy she was with Jacob. There were so many other boys, why should I like the same one as Bella? It wasn't right.
It wasn't right, but it was true. I liked Jacob a lot.
"Oh my God! I'm so sorry Jake! Are you okay?" Bella asked frantically.
Blood welled up from a long deep cut in Jacob's arm. He'd raised it to protect his face from the shard glass that had suddenly ricocheted off the bench.
I had been too caught up in my thoughts to notice much of what had happened, but I guessed from the broken glass on the bench and Bella's horrified expression that she'd dropped something, which had shattered, and gone everywhere, including into Jacob's arm.
I closed my mouth, taking long breaths through my nose, trying not to be sick. I was quite squeamish when it came to blood. I could hardly bear to watch as Jacob pulled the large piece of glass from where it was embedded in his arm.
Bella's face had an expression that had changed from horrified to grossed out, probably mirroring my own. Jacob ran water over his cut, and after a few minutes I couldn't see anything but a long pink line where it had been.
"Where'd it go?" I asked, surprised. The cut which had been dripping blood just five minutes earlier, looked like it'd happened weeks, even months ago.
"Uh... It was worse than it looked," Jacob answered quickly. I could tell he was lying, that he'd made up his excuse on the spot. Why was Jacob lying to me?
I could see on Bella's face that she was in on the secret, and she knew why the cut that should've needed stitches had just disappeared.
At that moment Charlie and Billy came in, so I broke off the question on the tip of my tongue.
During dinner, I noticed Jacob's hand entwined with Bella's, and I resolved to try and win Jacob over. Then I was horrified by my own thoughts. Bella had Jacob, she was happy, and I was planning to break them up.
No!
I would let them be together, without interfering at all. Bella deserved to be happy, and, like I'd thought earlier, there were so many other boys. But none were like Jacob...
When Charlie and Billy returned to the TV, I stayed in the kitchen with Bella and Jacob, chatting about nothing in particular while they washed and dried the dishes. I offered to help, but Bella had insisted that I have a break on my first night in Forks, or rather, my first night of living in Forks.
Despite Jacob's obvious liking for Bella, he looked around every so often to give me a private grin, or a wink. Bella was completely oblivious to these little moments that made me go all warm inside.
As I lay in bed that night, sleepless, I felt a tiny bubble of hope open up. My first day in Forks had gone reasonably well (after I'd met Jacob!) and I was optimistic for the future. But a thread of doubt nagged at the back of my mind. Who did I want to see happy: Bella or Jacob?
I don't know how long it took me to drift off into my dreamless sleep, but I was woken abruptly at around 2:30am by a piercing scream.
Bella!
I rushed across the landing to her room, and opened the door.
"Don't leave!" Bella pleaded, and I knew she wasn't talking to me. I could make out a figure residing in the shadows of Bella's room, away from the bright moonlight.
I looked from the person to Bella. "Are you okay? I heard you scream," I said quietly to Bella, with a glance at the mysterious person.
"Yeah, I'm fine Talia, I just had a bad dream," Bella replied, sighing. "I should probably introduce you two."
The person in the shadows stepped into the shaft of moonlight shining through the gap in the curtains, and I saw his face for the first time.
"This is my...my boyfriend, Edward Cullen. Edward, this is my sister, Natalia." Bella said tiredly.
"It's Talia," I said quickly. "I hate being called Natalia." Except when it was Jacob, I added in my head, but I wasn't going to say that out loud, ever.
"Hello, Talia," Edward said in a musical voice. I didn't stare at him, but he had the palest skin, most perfect face I'd ever seen. I could only imagine what he looked like in the day time, or in the sunlight...
"Hi," I mumbled, my brain befuddled by sleep and not functioning properly as I looked at Edward.
I could see Bella was on the brink of sleep, so I hastily said my goodnights (or rather, good mornings) and left, self-consciously feeling Edward's eyes on my back.
I tossed and turned for hours, thinking of Bella and Edward and Jacob. I'd honestly thought she was with Jacob, but then introducing Edward as her boyfriend? That was a bit selfish, to have two boys to herself.
So that meant Jacob was free. What about Edward? I liked both of them, but then there was Bella. For all Edward's beauty, (I felt strange calling a boy beautiful, but in Edward's case it was true) I thought I preferred Jacob, but I wasn't completely sure.
Eventually I drifted off, and slept through the rest of the night without waking up. But maybe I did wake up... because I thought I saw Edward Cullen, standing in my room, watching me.
So there's my first chapter! Please review, I want to know your opinion. I won't be able to update, or reply to any reviews for at least a week, because I'm going away and I won't have any internet access. (How will I survive?)
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