AN: So, this is my new story. I'm super excited about it, too.
I hope you like it. Give it a chance, please. :)
If you've read my other story, you'll know my chapters have a song to them.
Well, this story does too. :)
Chapter 1 song: That's Not My Name by The Ting Tings
Masque and Masked
Chapter 1: That's Not My Name
It was snowing. I loved the snow. At least the first snow, when it wasn't dirty yet, because when you lived in New York, that didn't take long.
So when I woke up to find snow, I was actually in a good mood. Snow meant the start of my favorite season. Winter. Winter in New York was, in my opinion, better than winter anywhere else. Especially once Thanksgiving was over. The lighting of the tree at Rockefeller Center, the ice skating rink in central park. All the shops open late for shopping. Of course I'd be in a good mood.
However, that changed when I got to school Friday morning.
Unfortunately, I had a run in with Alice and her posse. For some reason, they hated me. I didn't know why. Was it that they had more money than me? That they had hotter boyfriends than me? Or, a boyfriend at all, I should say. Was it that they dressed better than me?
Well, it's not like we had much choice in what we got to wear to school though. I mean we did have uniforms.
All the girls had to wear matching skirts that went a few inches above the knees, and were dark blue. Also, we all had to wear long sleeved white shirts, with a collar so we could wear ties that tied around our necks. (Picture on Profile)
There were only three things that allowed a girl to show her own personal style:
1. Her hair.
2. Her tights. Or socks, whichever the girl preferred. They could be any color or design.
3. Her shoes. The shoes could be flats, heels, or boots.
The guys could either wear black pants, tan pants, or gray pants, with white tops, and a dark blue jacket, as well as black shoes. They also needed ties, that striped with red and white, (because there would be way too much blue otherwise…) (Picture on profile)
So, that didn't give them any reason to hate me.
Well, there was one person in that group that didn't hate me. That was Alice.
We were neighbors while we grew up. We always used to hang out and have sleepovers.
But, then she moved when we were in seventh grade. And she moved to the so-called, 'rich' part of town.
She'd always had money. Her father, Carlisle, was the number one doctor in the state of New York. Her mom lived in Florida, but send a very big check every month.
Then there was my family. My dad, Charlie, was a police officer. Well, the police chief of the city, so we had a pretty good paycheck coming in too. My parents were divorced and my mom lived in Arizona and had a new husband who was a Minor League Baseball player, so we got some money from her as well, but I still had nowhere near as much as Alice did.
When she moved, she also moved to a new school, and made a whole new group of friends. They also had quite a bit of money. Alice and I sometimes hung out still, though.
But, that all changed when high school started.
The summer before ninth grade, her father got remarried, to a fashion designer, a very successful one, named Esme, and that brought in even more money. It also brought her a new stepbrother, Edward.
Cullen was one of the most well known names in New York after that wedding.
I'd never met Edward. She'd never introduced us. I'd never met any of her other friends, either.
Alice was always planning on going to the St. Jude's private school in the East Side. She could defiantly afford it. So, that's where she went.
Surprisingly, I did too. Apparently I got a part scholarship for it. I didn't even know you could get scholarships for a high school.
That meant that when high school started, we were going to the same school again. I thought that was going to be great and that I would be able to finally see her often.
How wrong I was.
She would always hang out with her new friends, and she wouldn't talk to me around them. I tried to ignore it at first, but it didn't work.
When she wasn't with them, she would talk to me, and she would still call me some weekends.
When I asked her about it, she just said her friends didn't want any more friends, so she just choose not to talk to me. I didn't believe that.
So, I just ignored it.
Oh, and did I mention St. Jude's was co-ed? Of course, that meant that Alice got a boyfriend almost right away. His name was Jasper. And that meant that Alice would talk to me even less thanks to him.
I wasn't the prettiest girl at school, not even close. While all the other girls would choose to spice up their outfits, I just wore plan black shoes with black socks. My hair wasn't anything special. It was a dirty brown that I usually just wore in a ponytail. I also wore glasses, and no makeup.
Because of that, no one really thought I would belong in their 'groups'. So, I just stayed to myself most of the time. I didn't go out to parties every weekend like all the other students would. Instead I stayed at home and would read a good book or do my homework. Since I was on scholarship, I had to keep my grades up.
So, because of this, most people didn't really get to know me or anything. A lot of people didn't even know my name, they would call me Elizabeth, or Izzy, or Liz. My name is Isabella, preferably Bella. How do they get Elizabeth from that? I don't even know! I mean, I was in eleventh grade now, and they still had no clue they were getting my name wrong.
Hell, some people even called me 'that one girl', or 'her'. Yes, I've heard it before.
So, when I ran into Alice and her friends that day, it didn't go too well.
I was walking to my locker, and there was a group of people standing around my locker. I recognized them as Alice's friends, Alice and Jasper included in that group, along with several other people. Of course, all the girls were dressed to match the weather. They all had their expensive jackets and gloves, and had expensive boots on their feet.
"Excuse me," I said, as I got nearer, expecting them to move out of the way.
The girls looked over at me, looked me up and down, and rolled their eyes. They did move though.
I opened my lock and was taking my books out of my bags when one of them said, "Jeez, got enough books there, Beth?"
I rolled my eyes still facing away, so they didn't see.
"It's Bella," I said.
"Like I care," she laughed, and they all left.
I looked back at them, and Alice was looking back at me, looking somewhat apologetic. She turned away from me when one of her friends, Rosalie I think her name was, started talking and laughing with her.
And so, the day went on like that. I didn't have a lot of friends, just a few people to sit with at lunch, but I was okay with that.
I wasn't really such a freak that no one wants to be my friend. If I'm being honest, I'd say that living anywhere else, say Washington, I'd have fit right in, probably even been popular, and 'rich'. But by the St. Jude's standards, I was considered poor.
I had some of Alice's friends in my classes, but they didn't pay any attention to me. No one did, really. I only talked when the teachers would call on me.
And don't even get my started on gym class. I wasn't a klutz or anything, but I wasn't very athletic. So, I was usually the last person to get picked for a team.
I was just happy today was Friday.
Since St. Jude's was a Prep school, I got quite a bit of homework. I spent my night doing that.
Since it was Friday, I was surprised when my cell phone started ringing that night. It was Alice.
Weird, I thought, She's always doing something Friday night.
So I answered.
"Hello?"
"Bella?"
"Yeah."
"Hey, it's Alice." She had a cheery tone to her voice, this can't be good.
"Yeah, I know."
"Oh, good!" There was a pause before she started again, "So, Bella. I was wondering if I could come over tomorrow and talk to you about something."
"Um," why couldn't she just talk to me on the phone? "Sure,"
"Oh, good!" She really was too cheery. "So, I'll be over at 8:00!"
"In the morning!" Didn't she need to sleep? I know I did.
"Yeah. We have lots to do." She said like it was obvious.
"Wait!" I just realized something. "Did you say lots to do? I thought you said you wanted to talk!"
"I did. After we talk there's something we have to do."
"What is it?"
"If I told you it would ruin what we have to talk about. Now stop asking questions, Bella."
"But Alice-"
"Not 'buts' Bella. I'll be there at 8AM sharp!" And with that, she hung up.
--
She wasn't lying. At 8:00 on the dot I heard a knock on my bedroom door.
"What!?" I shouted at the door.
"Bella! It's Alice. I told you to be up at 8:00! Why aren't you out of bed yet!"
I rolled out of bed and went to my door, and opened it, to see a surprised Alice. She obviously wasn't expecting me to actually open the door.
"Because, it's eight o'clock in the morning on a Saturday, Alice! I want to do this little thing called sleep."
"Oh, silly Bella. Stop being so dramatic. You can sleep when you're dead." Then she looked at me.
I also looked at her. She must've gotten up at 6:00 to look like she did. She had a dress that went halfway down her thighs. It was white and had pink flowers with black thorn type things going around them. She was also wearing black tights with black and white tie up heels. (Picture on profile.) Her hair was perfect, as always, short, dark, and spiky.
I was wearing gray sweats and a ratty old t-shirt.
"You know Bells, you look really good without your glasses on. That will come in handy."
I gave her a confused look. "What do you mean it will come in handy?"
"Oh, right. I haven't talked to you yet, have I? Boy I'm getting ahead of myself." She was talking really fast, I was having trouble keeping up.
"Alice?"
"What?"
"What do you want?"
"Oh, um, can I come in or something?"
"Uh, sure?" It came out as a question, as I opened the door to my room. She stepped in and looked around. It hasn't really changed since she was last here.
"What do you want Alice?"
She jumped a little, what's with her today? "Oh, right." She sat on the bed and patted the spot next to her. "Come, sit."
I went and sat by her with suspicious eyes. She was up to something, I could tell.
"What?"
"Bella, Rosalie is throwing a Masquerade Ball next Saturday."
I was confused. "And you had to tell me this, why?"
"Because you're coming." She blurted out.
If I were eating anything, I would've choked. "What?" I asked, shocked.
"I said you're coming!" She said that as if I was a four year old trying to understand a big word.
"What do you mean I'm coming?"
"Well, everyone is going to have a mask on, obviously, and so no one will recognize you there, and I know her house backwards and forwards, so it'll be easy to sneak you in! Oh, Bella. Please, please, please, say you'll come!"
"Alice," I said slowly, "You're telling me you want me to get all dressed and then sneak into your friends house?"
"Yes! So, will you do it Bella? Pleeeeease?" She knew I couldn't resist her puppy dog look.
I sighed, "Fine, I'll do it, Alice. But why do I have to sneak in?"
"Ahhhhh!" She screamed. "Oh, Bella. This is going to be so much fun!" Then her voice started going a mile a minute. "Oh my gosh, there's so much to do in so little time! We have to get you a dress, then shoes, and a mask. Oh! And jewelry. And we have to get your hair done, and get you contacts and-"
"Alice!"
"Oh, sorry." She didn't really look sorry.
"Tell me again why you have to sneak me in?"
"Because it's invitation only," she said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "But, we have to start shopping now, Bella."
"Now!"
She looked surprised I would ask such a thing. "Bella. The ball is next weekend. Of course we have to start now. We only have today and tomorrow."
"This is going to take two days?"
She looked at me, dumbfounded. Then nodded, while giving me a 'duh' look.
"Bella, get dressed, and meet me out in the car in 10 minutes, you got that?" I nodded. "Good."
I groaned and closed the door. I grabbed a pair of jeans and a comfortable shirt and threw on my tennis shoes.
--
Ten minutes later, I was walking down the steps of my flat and out to Alice's car. Seeing as it was New York, of course she didn't have her own car. She had a driver.
"Bella! Good timing!" she beamed, while rolling the window down, "Hop in!" She opened the door and I got in.
"Felix!" she called, and the driver rolled the window between the front and back seats down.
"Yes, Miss Cullen?" He asked in a slight Spanish accent.
"Take us to Manhattan Mall, please."
"Yes, Miss Cullen. May I ask who your friend is?"
"Oh, Felix. This is Bella Swan, one of my oldest friends!"
"It's nice to meet you, Miss Swan," he said to me with a nod of his head.
"You too." I replied with a shy smile.
"Miss Cullen, would you like the window up or down?"
"Up, please, so Bella and I can have some girl time!"
"Anything you like, Miss Cullen."
"Thanks Felix." Then the window went up.
I sighed.
"So, Bella. Tell me about your life."
I sighed again. "Well, I don't really know what to tell you, Alice."
"Oh, come on. There has to be something new with you."
I shrugged. "Well, my mom's husband might get called up to the Majors next season."
"Really! Oh my gosh, Bella, that's awesome." I could tell she was faking the enthusiasm.
"Yeah, I guess." I said, bored already. "What's new with you?"
"Oh, so much Bella! Esme got to design a few dresses for Paris's Fashion Week!" She looked so excited about that. "And she brought me and Edward along. Oh my gosh, Bella! It was so, so, so much fun! We got to see the Eiffle Tower. We ate French Toast in France! I have to show you the pictures when I get them back!"
"Wow, Alice, sounds like fun!" I tried to whip up half the enthusiasm as she had. This is why we were in such different crowds. We just didn't get excited about the same things anymore.
It was about fifteen more minutes before we reached the mall.
The window lowered again, "We are here, Miss Cullen," Felix stated.
"Thank you Felix. You can leave if you would like. Just be back by 5:00."
"Okay, Miss Cullen. If you need anything, you can just call me."
"Okay, thank you Felix." The window rolled back up. "Come on Bells, let's go." And with that she opened the door and hopped out.
Oh great, I thought sarcastically to myself, eight whole hours of shopping.
Reviews would be nice. :)
Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or it's characters.
