So here is my new story! I warn yo, it might seem like your average "all human AU" story, but it's got some Twists and Turns that nobody has seen coming in any other fanfic I've ever read! I'm super excited to be able to post my first chapter of it and I'm glad that y'all are here to witness this momentous occasion with me :D (lol...)
Disclaimer: I own nothing that is not mine... and such... so if it isn't mine, then I don't own it, but if I own it, then it's mine... indeed nods head for emphasis
I sighed. I knew I should have worked on finding a roommate before I had to actually head out here, but I didn't think it would be so hard. This is a big city, after all... but I've learned that the bigger the city, the more weirdoes in it.
Every place I'd checked out had so far been either been too small, too expensive, in too rough of a neighborhood, or had just been offered by someone too creepy.
What is it with San Francisco? Why couldn't I just find one place be worth all this craziness that my job was putting me through? I know, I know, I should have felt grateful for the promotion and everything, but how could I, when it meant moving so far away from my the people I cared about most, with no security net waiting for me? I mean, what if I fail, being all alone down here? What if the bosses decide that I'm not worth it after all? How would I be able to show my face to everyone back in Forks, see the disappointment written there, and not burst out crying?
Tears were beginning to well up in my eyes just at the thought when my cell phone rang.
I quickly wiped my eyes, and looked at the caller ID. It was my best friend who I desperately needed to talk to.
"Oh, I'm so glad to hear from you!" I tried to sound excited, rather than depressed, even though I knew that I could never fool him.
"Why have you been crying, Bella?!" he was nearly hysterical; he worried about me too much for his own good, and I loved him for it.
"I'm fine, really." He scoffed, and I ignored it. "I'm just having a minor freak-out... you know: anxiety, self-loathing, and all that jazz. What's up with you?"
"Oh, Bells... I'm sorry, hon. I wish I could give you a hug and make you feel better." I could hear the frown in his tone, and I didn't like it. Grant should always smile- it's like a law or something.
"Don't worry about me. I really am fine now. But why did you call?"
"You mean besides just to hear your charming voice?"
I blushed, even though I knew he couldn't see me. "Yes."
"Well, if you still haven't found an apartment yet, I might have found you a good one." After my squeals and praises, he continued. "It's reasonably priced, and it's only a couple blocks from your work. I think it's perfect."
"Oh, Grant, it sounds perfect! Thank you so much! How'd you find it?"
"It's called the internet, hon... you should try using it every once in a while."
I rolled my eyes and he gave me the information for the person I would be sub-letting for, but then he had to go to work. I promised to call and leave him an excellent voice mail once I got off the phone with the woman.
I was nervous as I started dialing, but the voice that picked up on the other side was so smooth and full of ease that I couldn't help but feel comfortable right away.
"Alice Cullen's phone."
"Yes, ummm, I was hoping that Alice was still looking for a roommate. Is she there?"
"She is. She's just finishing interviewing the last of her candidates, and lucky for you, none of them seemed promising. She should be done in a couple minutes. Can I have her call you back, or do you wish to have me entertain you for the time being?" the velvety voice asked, making me smile instantly.
"Entertain me."
"Well, let's see... two muffins are sitting in an oven-"
"Please tell me that you don't find muffin jokes amusing," I said playfully.
"I don't, but my sister does and I thought it was worth a shot. Any specific request on how to amuse you, since you seem so picky," he joked.
"No requests. I want to make this hard on you."
"Just like a female." I could tell that he was kidding, so I didn't take any offense. "How about I give you a mini interview while we wait, eh? That way our time shan't be wasted if Alice decides she doesn't like you, which I doubt will happen."
I was relieved that he had high hopes for me. I really wanted this apartment. So, of course, I agreed.
"Let's start off with the basics. Name?"
"Isabella Swan."
"Most recent address and reason for moving?"
"Right now I'm staying in a hotel. My work transferred me here from Seattle, Washington, and the sooner I find a place, the better."
"What do you do?"
"I'm the new Executive Editor for a publishing company called "Breaking Dawn," which specializes in up and coming authors, about to make their big break."
"Hence the name. You sound rather young to hold such a high position."
"I'm 26... it's not unheard of for someone my age to-"
"I apologize, I didn't mean to offend you, I was just observing. You must be good at what you do to earn yourself a promotion and new residence."
"I'm okay at it." I didn't want to mention that it was either this or getting fired. The circumstances for my transfer weren't exactly pleasant.
"I'm sure that you're more than 'okay' if you- what? Oh, Isabella, Alice is here now. Would you like to speak to her?"
"Absolutely." I was extremely happy to have been spared from having to defend myself in such a precarious position.
"It was lovely meeting you," he said before whispering in the background took over, followed by a playful shout of pain and giggling.
"Hello?" a bright voice asked.
"Alice Cullen?" I asked.
"Yes, and you must be Isabella Swan, my new roommate." I tried not to squeal at her words. "I hear that you're completely perfect in every way. Do you have time to come over now so I can meet you before you move your stuff in?"
"I actually have to get to a meeting for my work, but it should be finished in an hour or so, if that's alright."
"She's the new Executive Editor for the "Breaking Dawn" publishing company," said the voice of the man I was talking to earlier.
"Am I on speaker phone?" I asked, not sounding nearly as annoyed as I wanted to. I couldn't make myself angry at these two for some reason.
"Of course, I don't keep anything from my b-ahhh! he's attacking me!"
I laughed. "Don't attack her. I need her alive so I can find a place to live."
"I won't kill her." he responded simply, making me laugh again.
"Yup! I'm too special and he loves me too much!" she giggled, and so did I. They each sounded one of a kind.
I wrote down directions, and then headed out of my room and down to the hotel lobby, smiling at Jace, the doorman, and let him hail me a cab for an exhausting meeting with my new fellow co-workers.
Amazingly, my time at the office didn't seem as long as it usually did. And by "usually" I mean the three other times I had been there. The meeting flew by without a hitch and I hurried out as fast as possible, hoping that nobody would stop me and make me stay any longer. Fortunately, my clumsiness didn't kick in through my haste, and I exited the building without any new bruises, scrapes, or faculty meetings to beware of.
Alice's directions weren't very hard to follow, and her building was only a fifteen minute walk from my work, so that was a major plus. I was satisfied with Grant's work and soon I was in front of a gorgeous piece of architecture that would hopefully become my new home. I loved all the buildings in this city: they were all unique, yet the same in their rounded edges and the definite feel of the history, yet they still remained elegant and very much in place with the world today. These buildings were beautiful, and the one standing in front of me was no different. I was nervous just to walk inside to get to the elevator, nonetheless go up to the third floor and meet Alice.
I stared at the lobby door for quite a while until my phone buzzed in my purse. After a couple a minutes of sifting through everything (and I do mean EVERYTHING; I keep my entire life in that bag!) I brought the phone to my ear.
"Hello?"
"Third floor, remember?" came Alice's perky voice.
"Wha- yes, I remember. I just got to your building now."
"No, you didn't; you got here three and a half minutes ago, but I forgive you for keeping me waiting!" she giggled.
"How did you know that?" I asked, walking through the front doors and pressing the button to call the elevator.
"I'm psychic... AKA I saw you through the window. You have nothing to be nervous about. I won't bite you, and neither will my boyfriend Jazzy, who you'll meet on the stairs if you decide to go up that way."
"Can't, sorry. Stairs and I don't mix well," I said as an understatement as the elevator door dinged, opening up for me. I looked towards the stairwell, but I didn't hear any footsteps, so I just walked in and pressed the correct button to send me to my salvation.
"Clumsy? Or just easily winded?" she asked, a smile audible in her voice.
"Both, I think, but clumsy easily trumps the latter."
"I see," she said as the elevator door opened for me, revealing a very classy hallway. I wondered briefly if I really could afford this place, like Grant had said. It looked very upscale...
But standing at the end of the hall was someone who put my fears at ease.
"Izzy!!" She shrieked, her volume tripled by the echo of the hall and the voice over the phone. But I cringed from the nickname, not her.
She was running up to meet me, and I tried to keep the distaste for that name out of my face. She was a nice girl, and I didn't want to hurt her feelings while I was still trying to get this place.
"Hi, Alice," I said, hugging her.
"It's so nice to finally meet you, Izzy!" -cringe- "I've been envisioning this all day!"
"Ummm, where did you come up with 'Izzy', Alice?" I was trying to be as polite as possible as we were walking back down the hall.
"Well, 'Isabella' is obviously too long, so you needed a nickname!! And Izzy works for you! It's funky, yet cute and sweet!"
"Sorry, to break it to you, Alice, but I already have a nickname; I go by Bella."
"Bella's pretty! I'm not surprised other people like to call you that, Izzy!" I knew that there was no way to stop her from calling me that wretched name, so I just gave up. No reason to try when you already know you're going to fail, right?
By then we had reached her door and she led me in, giving me a short tour of the premises. There was the usual: living room, kitchen, two bedrooms, and a bathroom and a half. Not to mention the King-Sized Closets!! I didn't think it was possible for one to own so many clothes, I mean, the closet was as big as the room! When I told Alice this, she just laughed ominously. I didn't particularly like the sound of that...
But other than the scary closet scene, Alice and I had a nice afternoon. We decided that after both of us got off work tomorrow, she would drive over to my place and we would load my stuff up into her car and bring it over.
But I never expected that simple little gesture to cause such a scene!
She had just called me to let me know she was pulling up in front of the lobby, so I looked out the window yo see a shiny, ostentatious bright yellow porche, with windows tinted so dark, I didn't even know that it was Alice inside until she climbed out. And what she was wearing! Lime green sequined halter top and a mini skirt so mini that I'd be able to see her underwear if she bent over. Oh! she dropped her keys: yup, those were green, too.
I couldn't believe she would actually go OUT like that! And her boyfriend, Jazzy! How could he LET her go out like that! If I didn't like this girl so much, my opinion of her would have been incredibly altered by that outfit.
I saw a valet run over to her car and she lightly tossed him the keys, not even pausing in her walk as she approached the door. I saw Jace, staring at her with his eyes wide open; he was obviously just as shocked by her as I was. She politely asked him a question, which room I was in , I'm sure (I had told her to ask him, and told him to go ahead and let her know) and he motioned for her to follow him inside, out of the drafty, late afternoon air.
I waited anxiously in my room, pacing, for Alice to show herself at my door, and when there was a knock I flung myself at it, tripping and slamming into the door in the process.
"Ow," I mumbled to myself as I unlocked and opened the door. There was Alice smirking at me, and Jace in the background, still looking at Alice with a shocked look on his face.
"Feeling clumsy, Izzy?" she asked, spinning around and checking out her surroundings. "Where are your clothes?"
I pointed to my luggage cases on my bed and she strolled over, leaving me to stare at Jace.
"Izzy?" he mouthed the name, giving me a pitying look.
I nodded and mouthed back "Apparently..." while clutching my head. It hurt to move it after it's most recent knocking.
"Are you alright?" he asked, taking my face into his hands and stepping closer, examining my temple that I was sure was already beginning to bruise.
"I'm fine, I fall down all the time," I replied, pulling away with an embarrassment-induced blush on my face.
"You should be more careful with yourself, Bella, really..."
"OOOOOH!! Izzy!! I found you the perfect outfit!! "
Alice was still rummaging through my bags so I ignored her, looking instead to Jace, who was just looking in amazement at my new roomie.
"Does she ever slow down?"
"Not that I've witnessed. And to think! I'm going to be living with her!" We both laughed for a moment until the pixie in question zoomed over to my side.
"Jasey should get back to work because I'm going to dress Izzy up properly anyway!" It wasn't a mean dismissal; she had a smile on her face and she really thought that her "dress up" session would be fun for all.
"Bye Bella... and good luck!" he whispered the last part, pulling me into a hug.
"Thanks, Jace. See you later!" He closed the door and I could hear him take a few steps down the hall before Alice's excitement burst in verbal dialogue.
"Come on, Bella! Change into these!" She shoved clothes into my face that I didn't even recognize as something I owned. There was a pretty blue camisole and a pair of capri's, along with a some strappy blue shoes.
I could handle the top and pants, but not the shoes. I didn't have a death wish, after all. Plus, who wear heals when they're moving?
"What's the point of this Alice, there's no one to dress up for. We're just going to be in the car and then in your apartment."
"First off, it's our apartment, now, Izzy... and second, we're going to the mall!!" She let out a squeal so loud that I knew Jace would be able to hear down in the lobby.
"Why are we going to the mall, Alice?" I generally had a large distaste for shopping of any kind.
"To get you new clothes! Most of yours suck!" Her voice was so upbeat that I couldn't put up much of a fight in disagreement.
"You seem to like these enough to let me wear them in public," I joked.
"That's because those weren't yours five minutes ago. I picked them up on the way here."
I stared at her, the shocked look returning once again, and she pulled my shirt over my head and forced the new one on me. She reached forward to undo my belt, but I held a hand up to stop her; there are just some things you have to do yourself in my book. Once she had forced the pants and shoes on me, I wobbled uneasily, so she took my hand, walking me around the room a few times until I was used to the height. Then, she proceeded to dump almost all of my clothes out of my suitcases, leaving only two pairs of jeans, three tops, a couple undergarments, and one pair of pajamas. I was shocked. She was getting rid of everything! I knew she wanted to take me clothes shopping, but I couldn't afford an entirely new wardrobe right now! And I told her such.
"Don't be silly!" She said, dragging me out of the room. "I'm buying." And she wouldn't even let me argue. She would just start belting out "Wannabe" by The Spice Girls whenever I tried. To save myself from another scene such as when she pulled up to the hotel, I didn't argue. Much.
After two whole hours of shopping (at one point she had even looked into a music store and I was half convinced that she was going to buy me a trombone or something), she figured that I had enough to last me until the end of the week. I now understood the meaning of the maniacal laughter Alice let out when I talked about not using all of my closet space. The fact that her trunk was completely packed with shopping bags seemed irrelevant. I chose not to say anything, considering how she had switched from "Wannabe" to "Quit Playing Games With My Heart" by the Backstreet Boys. We drove back up to my hotel and she bribed the valet (I didn't want to know with how much) to let us keep the car there while we just ran upstairs to get what was left of my belongings (she had a maid come up and "dispose of the hideousness" while we were gone) and bring them down to her car.
We had finished loading everything and I was climbing into the passenger side when I heard my name being called.
"Bella!" I turned around to see Jace running up to us. Alice rolled her eyes and sighed as if she new something that I didn't. I frowned at her reaction. But Jace had gotten to the car by now. "Hey, Bella. You weren't going to leave without saying goodbye, were you?" he asked, feigning hurt.
"Of course not." I stepped away from the car and gave him a hug. "I was just waiting to see if you would coming running after me. You passed the test."
He smirked at me a little. "Well, I hope you know that if you ever want or need it, I'll be here to service you."
Alice coughed, but her smile stayed intact. "You mean the hotel will be of service to her if the need arises, Jasey?"
"Isn't that what I said?" I just smiled at him, refusing to take his words seriously. After all, I'm not the type of person people flirt with. He was just being nice. "Well, anyway, do you want to exchange numbers?"
"Um, sure, Jace," I answered awkwardly, well aware that Alice was staring. We traded cell phones and programmed our numbers in, and then switched back, barely even having time to say goodbye before she slammed on the gas and we were speeding down Polk St. to our place.
"You shouldn't encourage him if you're not interested," Alice said, her usual upbeat attitude in place. "It will make it harder when you officially have to turn him down."
"I wasn't encouraging and he wasn't even interested anyway," I responded. But would it be so bad if I wanted him to be a little bit? I'm not sure if I were exactly into him or if I just wanted somebody to want me, but I knew I wished that he really was flirting, no matter how unlikely that was.
"Alright," Alice said in a sing-song voice. I knew she had more thoughts on the subject, but she thankfully didn't pose them, as we were already at the apartment.
It took us several trips up and down, even though a few of Ali- our neighbors helped out. Once everything was piled into my new room, Alice immediately got to unpacking all of our new shopping and piling it into the closet and the dresser (which was left over from the last tenant, along with a nice bed, (whose mattress I flipped over first thing), telling me all about her family: her parents Carlisle and Esme, brother E, and boyfriend Jazzy. I was pleased to know that Jace and I weren't the only ones she gave ridiculous nicknames to.
I was most interested in hearing about E. From the description Alice gave of him, he seemed to be quite my cup of tea, if you will. And she spoke of him with such fondness in her voice, it was easy to tell that not only was he a good person on the inside, but she also cared for him deeply, and he for her.
I had never really had much of a family growing up; my mom (Renee) and dad (Charlie) had gotten divorced when I was just a baby, and I spent most of my time growing up in Phoenix, Arizona with Renee, who was a little too wrapped up in all the newest trends to really act as a proper mother to me. She was a good person and everything, but I was raised to be an adult at a young age, rather than just being another kid on the block.
When I was seventeen I moved back to Forks, Washington to live with Charlie, giving Renee a chance to settle down finally and be happy with her new husband, Phil. Charlie was a quiet man by nature, and was Police Chief of the small little town, working a lot, and whenever he wasn't working, he enjoyed spending his time fishing. I didn't mind being alone so much, but it was a slight disappointment to miss yet another chance at being a kid and living in a proper family.
Grant had a good family. He was the youngest of four kids and the only boy. There were cute pictures of him and his siblings playing around the house and teasing each other and just having a good time. I was lucky enough to be placed in some of the newer pictures when I moved to Forks and befriended one of his sisters, Maggie. Maggie had brought me home for a sleepover one night and I met Grant (who was a year younger than her, and therefore my own age) and we had been friends ever since. I think it might have been fate for me to move to that desolate town so that I might have been able to gain one true friend in my life.
But recounting all my adventures with Grant and the family that he had shared with me was enough to make me realize that Alice's family was going to be another "almost" for me. I would be considered "almost" a part of the family, but never exactly one of them. I was doomed to forever be stuck as an "almost" in every aspect of my life.
"What's wrong?" Alice asked, pulling me out of my thoughts. I had no idea how long I had been stuck in my own world, but Alice's sudden appearance in my line of sight surprised me and caused me to tumble ungracefully off the bed. After helping me up and laughing for a good four minutes, she repeated her question.
"Nothing's wrong. I was just thinking about your family and how I'd love to meet them someday." I half-lied.
"Oh, you will! I bet you'll really like E! He's such a sweet guy once you get to know him and he'll just-"
"He'll just make me swoon, I bet," I said without thinking. A blush immediately surfaced on my cheeks. I hadn't meant to tell her that her stories made me develop a little crush... now it was going to be awkward between us!
"That's a definite possibility," she said, making me blush even more. Suddenly her phone rang. "Hey Jazzy!" she answered, not even looking at the caller ID.
I gave her a look, but apparently she was right, because she started giggling like crazy.
"Hold on," she told her Jazzy before turning to me. "Izzy, I'll introduce you two if you want, but it won't work out in the end. Trust me on this. Or actually, you know what, you don't have to trust me; here, Jazzy will tell you."
She tossed the phone to me and of course I dropped it. She giggled while I fell off the bed again trying to retrieve it. When I finally put the damn device to my ear, I could hear Jazzy chuckling at me, too.
"Hello?" I asked him, slightly peeved at him for laughing at me.
He must have been able to feel my waves of irritation through the phone because he immediately apologized. "I'm sorry, Izzy-" darn, I didn't want that name to catch on "-but I couldn't help it. You're probably one of the most accident-prone people I know. We'll have to watch out for you to make sure you don't kill yourself."
"You're not helping your case by apologizing like that," I mumbled, causing him to chuckle again. "But my ability to trip while standing still is not the point of the conversation. This is about Ali-"
"A smart person never bets against Alice. She's always right with her predictions," he interrupted, not even letting me finish my sentence. I was slightly dumbfounded when I handed her back her phone without another word.
She smirked at me and resumed her conversation with her Jazzy while I tried to regain my composure. I didn't want to believe that Alice could be wrong about this because her brother sounded like such a good guy. I weighed my options for a few minutes before Alice hung up, setting her gaze upon me.
"So, I guess you're gonna trust me-us on this, right?" She smiled as if she saw where my mind was going.
No, I wasn't going to leave it as is. I was going to be a rebel, bet on the underdog, try all my options, and every other cliche out there.
"I think I still want to meet him, see what happens from there," I declared boldly.
"Alright, Izzy, but I warned you..."
She smiled that mischievous smile again, but this time I wasn't afraid. I saw it as a challenge. I was going to meet E and find out if things could actually end happily ever after for me for once.
There it is! I hope you enjoyed my crazy little story because thats all there is! No more!
And of course I'm lying about that, but there's no more for today!
I hoped that this chapter peaked your interest because the good stuff is still to come!
Much Love,
Grace, the unGraceful