DISCLAIMER: I own the plot nothing else... although I wish i did :)
Chapter 1
1970
PPOV
The predictability of rain made me feel like some sense of routine had been restored to my life. The rain fell steadily down the two small windows of my new room. A room that was dull, sunless...unfamiliar.
I laid in the bed, hearing every now and then the creak of the door. My father making sure that I was sleeping no doubt. I blocked out his noisy foot falls as the trailed down the stairs, and focused on the intent nothingness. The sounds of the night were so different here. I was waiting for the occasional cricket to chirp, or for the flutter of a birds wings. But everything was still. Silent. Abrupt. The rain made me restless. A sound that I certainly hadn't become accustomed to.
Moving to Forks was never on the agenda. For me at least. Fate had different plans. Plans that involved me relocating to the other side of the country to escape the night my life changed. The taking of my mothers life. The screeching sound of the tires rang frightfully in my mind. The image of my mothers manic expression as she desperately tried to swerve. The collision of her head to the steering wheel. The impact. Me, after several hours of being unconscious, opening my eyes to find my mother. Bleeding, pale...and worst, still. The images that haunted me. The sounds that tortured me relentlessly, keeping me awake to the early hours of the morning. No matter how hard I tried to escape, the memories were still there. Six months ago, my life was altered. Shifted course. And so here I lay.
The sound of rain trickling down the windows of the unfamiliar room. The sound of my heart beating. Barely. The quiet hum of the television. And the uncomfortable feeling that at any moment, my world would spiral out of control.
That I would lose my grip on what little sanity I had left, and that the undeniable fear of letting go, moving on, would eat away at the void left in my heart. I knew that every moment from now until forever, I would miss her.
A silent tear made it's way down my cheek and hit the pillow. I willed the sobs away, and focused on the wall of the right side of my room. I stared at it intently, as if staring at an intricate piece of artwork. Trying to decipher it, but with no luck. I stared at that wall all night, the tears subsided, and my eyes were more alert than ever to the foreignness of my surroundings. And then suddenly, the alarm clock rang. Every time I heard the ringing, I would imagine I had awoken from a very awful nightmare. That my mom would come into my room, jump on the side of my bed and tell me to wake up to the beautiful sun. Instead, the rain continued to fall harder on the roof, and the gloom casted an ominous shadow over my room. The ringing of the alarm clock continued as I laid motionlessly.
The sound grew louder and the shrilling tone made my ears ring. The noise was now at deafening proportions, but still I laid. Afraid to move, hoping that if I resisted the urge to hit the alarm clock, that normalcy would be returned to my life. The ringing continued for another ten minutes, when I realized, no matter how hard I hope and pray, my life would never be the same.
When I was asked 'What I wanted to be?' when I was little, motherless was never the first thought that came to mind. Today was my first day of Junior year at Forks High School. With only a mere population of four hundred students, I was well out of my depth.
The school's population was one year level at my previous school. Crowds had always made me feel safe. Some people say they like their space, but I say bring the claustrophobia on. The more people around, the more I could fade into the background. Not get too attached to anyone, so I could make a quick escape if I needed to. I pulled my hair into a loose ponytail, and made my way over to the closet. I had always dressed as somewhat of a tomboy. I reached for my favourite pair of jeans, a white singlet, a trench coat and my very faded purple Converses. And of course, the pendant my mom had given me for my seventeenth birthday. Four months before the accident. It was a simple silver locket, with the most intricately engraved rose on the front. It was the only piece of jewellery I had ever owned, and I never took it off. It somehow made me feel closer to her if I wore it constantly. I slung my black bag onto my back and made my way down the narrow staircase. I stared down at the crisp shade of brown, and thought of home instantly.
Everything in Forks was different. Coming over the bridge that led to the small town, was like stepping onto an alien planet, or into an alternate universe. The trip was awkwardly quiet, with Dad attempting to make small talk. He asked about school, he even took the time to notice that my hair was longer than when he saw me last. I answered as briefly as possible, not knowing what to say to the stranger that sat beside me.
The last time my father and I had a conversation was when I was thirteen. That was the last time I could remember any form of communication. Forks was the wettest place in the continental US. Every day was unrelentingly dreary. There was a reason why the place was labeled 'god's waiting room' everyone who moved to Forks, never left. The ditch ridden highway made my stomach flip uneasily, as Dad managed to find every pot hole in the road. Thick forest lined the roads into the town, I stared out the window at the greenery. In Arizona, shades of brown and green lived in harmony. Nothing here was brown. It was green, wet and lifeless. I loved Arizona. I would miss the hot air, the sun as it fell behind the mountain backdrop, the constant state of change, and mostly...the freedom.
After Mom had died, the plan was that I would stay with my Aunt Audrey, in Tucson for my last two years of high school. Short of getting on my hands and knees and begging to stay, Dad grudgingly agreed. After three months of living with Aunt Audrey, she had enough of my 'life endangering ways'. My partying till the small hours of the morning, coming home smelling of pot, alcohol and cigarettes. Three months of this routine, Aunt Audrey got tired quickly. I had pushed her too far, when I came home after another night of reckless endangerment. Needless to say, Aunt Audrey was on the phone to my father that instant, and the next morning I was on a bus to Port Angeles, a seaside town about an hour away from Forks.
I made my way to the kitchen table, and pulled away a seat, as Dad sat across from me. Eating his Cheerios and reading the morning paper.
"Sleep well?" He murmured between mouthfuls.
"Yeah" I replied quietly, as I poured a bowl of cereal. The awkward silence was back, as I ate the now soggy cereal.
"Do you have everything you need?" Dad asked after another three minutes.
"I think so" I answered.
"Well..tell me if you need anything else"
"Uhm yep" I looked around the poky kitchen and sighed.
"I have to get to work, did you want a ride to school?"
"No" I said a little too hastily.
"I'll just walk"
"In this weather? I don't think so" Dad answered with a gleam.
"Come with me" He stood from the seat as I trailed behind. Dad exited out the front door, and led me to the garage. It creaked an shuddered as Dad rolled the door up.
"I'm still working on it..but it should be okay for you to take to school today...as long as you don't push it over sixty...you should be fine" He chuckled a little.
"You're giving me a car?"
"Why not? It's just sitting here" He smiled. I didn't know what to say. I did love the truck though. It was rustic, and not gaudy in any way. Just my style.
"Do you like it?" He asked approvingly.
"It's so...thoughtful...thank you Dad" I said, still in awe.
"No big deal" He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, as another smile broke over his face.
"Have a good day kiddo" He said as he walked to the pickup truck that we had rebuilt one summer. Dad taught me the ins and outs of cars. And surprisingly, I liked it. Knowing that I could always fix a car gave me a feeling of independence. Dad was the town mechanic, and undoubtedly, he knew everyone in Forks. Dad gave me another quick wave, and I sheepishly returned it, as I opened the door of my second-hand pick up. The engine spluttered to life. I backed out of the slick driveway, and onto the road that led straight to the high school. My stomach was filled with unfamiliar butterflies. Never had I felt so nervous, as I pulled into the car park of the brick school. It was rustic. The architecture from a much earlier century. The shrill tone of the bell sounded, it made the butterflies in my stomach erupt into large moth type things. I grabbed my bag off the back seat, and walked up the narrow path. I could feel the burning stares on my back as I entered the office. Whispers accompanied my entrance.
"Isn't she Drew's daughter?" A parent in the administration area asked another parent.
"I think so...she looks very different to what I remember...I wonder why she is living in Forks now?" The woman questioned with a puckered brow.
"Mm" The other parent added. I walked to the desk where an alert woman sat. Like she had been drinking way too much coffee.
"You must be Drew's daughter!" She mused gleefully.
"Paige" I replied.
"Well love, let me just fix you up with a timetable, and you should be on your way" The woman was gone for what felt like a very long time. Finally, she returned with two pieces of paper. One white, one blue.
"Sorry it took so long" She apologized with the same hyper eyes.
"No worries" I replied with the hint of a smile.
"Well...this here is your timetable, and this a map of the school...just ask someone if your not sure where your class is" She smiled.
"Thanks" I answered quietly and exited quickly. The eyes of the gossiping parents followed me out of the creaky door. My first class was AP History. My best subject by far. The only subject that I didn't have to kill myself to get an A for.
AN: This is my first published fanfic so I'm really nervous. Read and Review!! All opinions are welcome!!
Just a special thanks to my bff Sonya (aka glittersniffer. xx ) for kicking me in the ass for not publishing sooner!