The sky outside was grey, the clouds were a thick blanket stretching as far as the eye could see. From my window, I saw greens brighter than anything we had in Phoenix. The colors were intense that you sometimes had to blink a few times to believe it. In contrast, the sky is dull, the people are dull, and everything except the trees are dull. I've been here for a few years now after moving in with Charlie in high school. I'm now starting my second year at Forks community college. My roommates, Angela and Jessica, are old friends from high school. Although, to be fair, everyone at FCC either went to Forks High or was from Forks. I don't mean to come across as jaded or distant. I love my roommates and my drab town. In total honesty, Forks is very much so my kind of town, I don't really shine in the sun and I prefer the slow pace of the town, Phoenix was too crazy with too many people.
Angie and Jess were really great roommates. The three of us were thick as thieves. Angie was steady, very much so the mom of the house. Jess was dramatic in the best way. Everything was an event. When her on-again-off-again boyfriend, Mike, breaks up with her, she shows up in tears with three pints of Ben and Jerry's and an army of chick flicks. When Jess breaks up with Mike, we are required to put on our sluttiest outfits and go to the Strip, basically a road of bars stacked one on top of the other. When the two were actually together, they were the two people in the room that made everyone uncomfortable because they would be all over each other. Angie and her boyfriend were very much like Angie herself: slow and steady. They became a thing when Ben asked her to homecoming their Freshman year. By Junior prom, they were a couple. Now they are considering marriage. And me? I am a single, 21 year old virgin who has never had a boyfriend and has a severe Tinder addiction. But in a house with two people who are madly in (and sometimes out) of love, who can blame me for wanting someone to text me silly little nothings late at night.
I sat in front of the mirror examining my forehead, determined to rid myself to the last damn pimples. My skin was left blotchy and irritated. I sighed in exasperation. After I hit twenty, I was really hoping I'd be done with this. I am pretty sure I had my awkward years in middle school, not that high school was much better. I looked up in the mirror and my eyes met Lucy's. Lucy is my standard poodle Charlie gave me because he thought I would be lonely when I moved to Forks after Phil essentially kicked me out so he could bang my mom. It's okay… I'm not bitter. Lucy really is the best dog, though, and she is living the life. Between me as a homebody, Angie keeping her on a schedule which includes a morning run and a brisk evening walk, and Jess constantly needing to be consoled, Lulu gets a lot of attention. Meeting my gaze, Lu whined a little and stood up on my bed, her front paws dancing a little in anticipation of dinner. I glanced at my clock on the desk. Five fifty nine. The bitch was trained to the minute.
Groaning, I got myself up off the carpeted floor. Lucy hopped off my bed and sat next to the door, patiently waiting for me to open it for her. I did and I went into the pantry to get her food, placing the bowl by the door leading to our yard. She waited until I gave her the "go" command. That was Charlie's only rule in the house: Lucy had to be the most well behaved dog on the block. She was a gorgeous dog, cut into a shaggy, long fur: black with white patches. Her fur was soft as clouds and she was patient. She slept with me most nights, except when Jess got drunk and sad and alone, in which case, Lucy would walk upstairs dutifully cuddling up to her all night.
It was Friday night in August, meaning it wasn't miserably cold yet. I slipped on some flip flops and let Lucy out to run in the backyard. The small green space was fenced in by a wood fence and Christmas lights were strung around the tree and edges of the yard, leftover decorations from Jess's birthday bash last year. From the right, I heard laughter and clinking. Sounds like the frat boys next door were having yet another party. I hadn't met any of them, but Jess said they were pretty cool. They were some kind of Native American frat. Jess said they were all really hot and hung out shirtless for the most part. Initiation require getting a tattoo and working out, so I believed her when she said they were some of the most attractive guys at FCC. All of them were from the Rez, so very few of us actually knew them. Music started playing from inside the house and the smell of woodsmoke filled my nose. Even Lucy went to sniff the fence parting our yards. Compared to our neighbors, our house was very quiet.
Coming back into the house, Lucy curled up in her bed in the kitchen -the spoiled little lady had a bed in every room -as I started dinner. Getting together a salad and some pasta and chicken, I moved into the living room and flipped on the TV, watching some show about vampires and werewolves. At seven on the dot, Angie walked down in her spandex and sports bra, leash in hand. Lucy jumped up and did her dance until Angie had hooked her up.
"I'll be back in about an hour," Angie said, stretching. As if on cue, someone knocked on the door.
"Ready to go?" Ben said as he opened the door. Ben was a nice guy, I guess. He kind of annoys me, the way he just hangs around all the time and dismisses everyone in the room who is not Angie. Not to mention the fact that Angie is way out of his league. But I'm Angie's friend so really no one is good enough for her. She is hot, an avid runner and a biology major, aka-future-doctor. Ben is smart, a computer science major. He runs now because of Angie, which has done wonders for his physique, but he's always been a little scrawny for my taste.
"Yeah, babe," Angie replied. It took all my willpower not to roll my eyes. They are so couple-y. The two of them walked out the door with Lucy. Angie got a few whoops from the frat guys. Ben, of course, did nothing but start running.
I turned from the door and flipped off the TV. I had my yoga class at seven thirty that I didn't want to miss. Thank God for our membership to a twenty four hour gym because there really wasn't much else to do on a Friday night. I changed into my workout clothes, anticipating the hard hour of yoga, and then another hour on the treadmill. Grabbing my keys and my mat, I walked out to my old truck. I had to punch the engine a few times to get it to start, but that was normal. Turning behind to back out, someone knocked on my window. A tan guy with short hair and a bright smile was leaning against the car and waving.
"You know I could always help with your engine. I used to build engines in high school." The guy was shirtless and his muscles rippled when he moved. He had a tattoo on his shoulder and his teeth were just so white. "My name's Jake." He winked at me.
"Hello, Jake. I'm Bella. That's really too kind of you, but unfortunately I have my yoga class in twenty minutes that I don't want to be late for so I gotta run." I blurted out. I was not used to cute guys making conversation with me outside of the safety of my cell phone.
"That's fine," he chuckled, "just let me know if you're interested. I could have you and that engine purring in no time." Behind him his buddies laughed as a blush crept from my cheeks down to my breasts. Jake knocked twice on the hood and walked off.
I sped out of my neighborhood and made it to the gym in record time.
Coming back after the gym, I was super sweaty and exhausted. I was ready for a shower and to cuddle up against Lucy and go to bed. Pulling my rumbling truck into the neighborhood, I scanned the area by my house for a parking spot. Nothing. I hated these damn frat boys. You couldn't ever leave the house after seven without forfeiting parking. I found a spot in the neighborhood across the road and walked over. Annoyed.
There were a few people hanging outside to the frat boys house, playing beer pong and corn hole, but no sign of Jake with the brilliant smile. I fished out my keys and opened the door to my house. The bass in the other house could be felt in ours. I rolled my eyes and chugged another bottle of water. I could feel the cold running through my body. Lucy ran downstairs to come and greet me. I patted her little head as I made my way to my room, the only bedroom on the main floor. There were two upstairs, as well as the washer and dryer. We also have a porch up there where we hang out when the weather is nice.
I took my shower and pulled my long brown hair into a messy bun. Picking up my laptop and my cellphone, Lucy and I made our way upstairs. Jess, Angie, and I used to hang out a lot here when we moved in over the summer and their boyfriends were traveling. Now, I am pretty much the only one who uses it.
I setup my laptop on the coffee table we put out here, setting up the Tudors to play.