Chapter 1 - Scent
This was all just another charade to aid in keeping ourselves inconspicuous; high school. This charade, being so unbelievably pointless and irritating did almost nothing, the humans knew we were different, anyone who saw us knew we were. Any human can see it, but they all choose to ignore it because on a subconscious level they know it is pointless to believe anything other than what we want them to. One; because they feel that if they say something, no one else will understand and then a week later they would be sitting in a mental illness hospital under the watchful eye of doctors with syringes and strait jackets. And two because they are scared of us and what we could do to them, but they don't know we wouldn't. Even though they don't specifically know what we are, they know we are quite the opposite of angels.
The cafeteria was oddly a buzz today, which didn't make me overly curious, why would it? The only reason for the difference was the arrival of a new student, yippee doo! These humans have such boring and also repetitive lives that something like a new face makes them overly excited. This town exists almost like there is no other way of living, as if this is all there is. And even though they must know there is something else out there, they don't choose to see it because they are scared to leave the shelter of their boring, and seemingly simple, small town lives.
I sat down with my tray of food - pizza, an apple and a can of soda (blech!) - that will stay untouched until discarded at the warning bell. I looked at the faces of my two brothers and two sisters, staring blankly at nothing in particular. They look more like statues than humanlike in this state, though we were very far from human also.
All of a sudden the buzz of the cafeteria became more prominent for a fraction of a moment and then ceased as quickly as it magnified as our new acquaintance entered. My eyes pulled away from the faces of my bored family to look over at the person entering the cafeteria alongside Jessica Stanley and Mike Newton (typical that it should be them who had grasped onto the new kid).
As he walked in I was caught off-guard, something about him amazed me. For a human, he seemed so un-human-like, he was very handsome, nothing like the other human boys attending this school but there was an air about him, he was very different but I couldn't quite understand what it was that made him so. His piercing green eyes shot over to look in mine as if he sensed my gaze on him. I immediately looked away, shocked. I felt puzzled then suddenly alarmed as I felt a sort of prodding at my mental shield that I had never experienced before, very strange. Alarmed and curious, I looked over to Mike Newton's table where I assumed he would be seated and met his gaze once again; he was (still) intently staring at me. I became severely unnerved. Was he trying to break through my shield? How could he? He is just a human?
I felt my sister, Alice's gaze on me. She sensed my unease and looked over at me warily, concern and confusion written all over her face. I glanced at her then back at the boy, who had finally stopped staring at me, which alarmed me even more because the prodding at my shield had ceased as his gaze had. She followed my gaze to look at him as well. I heard a sharp intake of breath, what was it that she had seen on my face, on his face and what could she see?
I listened intently to the voices drifting from the now very crowded junior table, hoping that I would hear his name. Edward Masen. After hearing the name, I stayed tuned into the voices of the table, as I listened I heard Mike Newton talking to Edward about me and my family, "That's Isabella, or Bella, Cullen. Her sister and brother are Emmett, the big dark haired one and Alice, the one with short hair. The twins are the two blondes, Rosalie and Jasper Hale. They are all paired up, Alice and Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie." Mike Newton said to Edward Masen, with a voice of all wisdom in the Cullen family department, "They live a little out of town. I heard they live in a giant mansion. Totally loaded. Their father is a doctor at the hospital. He and his wife apparently adopted the five of them; they are too young to have 5 teenage kids. They don't mingle, they keep to themselves, to be honest with you, and I think it's a good thing. There is something about them I don't trust."
"What about Bella?" Edward asked Mike.
"What about her?" Mike answered clearly not understanding what Edward meant.
"Who is she paired with? You said they were all paired?" Edward pushed.
"Oh", Mike finally got it, "Well…she isn't really paired with anyone." I laughed to myself, remembering Mike's efforts to swoon me just after we first moved here.
"So she's not got anyone?" He said hopefully, suddenly looking at me again, looking at me like he knew I could hear their hushed conversation over the noise of the other students in the cafeteria.
"No." Mike said flatly, "But don't get your hopes up, no one here is good enough for her." He finished sourly, which made me laugh out loud this time. Edward heard me and smirked in my direction. Then he stared intently, Mike followed his gaze and put his hand in front of Edwards eyes. "Oi! Like I said, don't bother." But Edward kept staring and for some reason, I couldn't help but stare back, my gaze was locked on his, I was unable to wrench my eyes away.
Suddenly, without warning a gust of wind blew from the window behind Edward and I caught his scent. At that moment his time was up, at that moment, everyone in that cafeteria's time was up. His blood was the most tantilising I had ever experienced before, nothing like all the other humans in the cafeteria. I felt someone's strong grip on me, Alice was holding onto my arm. She could sense what was up, she knew what was wrong, and she could see it on my face as well as in her vision.
"Bella, don't. I can see it and I know you can stop it." She said to me, I tried to release my arm eagerly but the Emmett caught my other arm and held me there too. I looked over at Edward and felt such a hatred for the boy. If I killed him, it would ruin my family. We would have to move again and that would be unfair. How I wanted to kill him though. The monster who has been, for so long, pushed down to the bottom of my very being has now clawed its way up once again. I, well the monster, wanted to overpower my siblings and kill the boy, which would mean the massacre of the rest of the school. I had learnt to control the monster who constantly wished to overpower me for so long, but Edward's blood brought the monster back to life inside me.
I did not want to be a monster. I would not let it overpower me. I will not be a monster. Not again.
Suddenly the bell went and I got out of there as quickly as I could without being noticed. My self control pushed to almost breaking point. I was amazed at myself for having such a hold on myself to stop from killing Edward. I thanked Alice and Emmett inside as I fought hard to push the monster down deeper again.