I sat in the Forks High cafeteria staring at my trig book. I had a test tomorrow and I sucked at math. I was surrounded by my friends Jessica, Angela, Mike, and Eric. They were all chatting happily about their weekend plans. "So what are your plans this weekend Bells?" Angela asked pulling me out of math world and back to reality.
"I don't know...probably just hanging out at home. Charlie's gonna be working a lot this weekend so I thought I'd catch up on my reading." I responded.
"Oh come on Bella, come hang out with us for once." Angela pleaded.
"Yeah, we never see you outside of school." Mike chimed in. It was at this moment that the Cullen's entered the cafeteria. "Finally, this is my favorite time of day. The Cullen women are so hott!" Mike added.
"I would give anything to spend a day with Edward." Jessica finally joined the conversation. Angela nodded in agreement and I followed suit but I had a secret. Edward wasn't my favorite, he was the bronze haired hottie. Neither was Emmett, the one with black hair and muscles the size of Texas. Nor was Jasper, the one with long blonde curls who looked like he was fixing to explode any second. He always had that look on his face, I was dying to ask him why. Honestly, I liked Alice, the petite one with spiky black hair. I knew it wasn't normal to have these feelings, but there was something about her that sucked me in. And on top of all that the Cullen's weren't just ordinary high school kids. They had the most beautiful marble like skin that was a porcelain white. And amazing honey golden eyes that seemed to stare into your soul. They all moved so gracefully too, making it impossible to take your eyes off of them when they walked. I'd lived in forks since I was 5 and they moved here my freshman year of high school. I'd heard that they came from Alaska. I almost wanted to go there just to see if everyone there looked like they did. If so, then I was moving to Alaska. I was just your ordinary unable to tan teenager with brown hair and brown eyes, and to top it all off I was super clumsy too. I was the total opposite of the Cullen kids.
"So are you gonna come shopping with me and Jess?" I realized then that Angie was talking to me and also that I was staring directly at Alice who was staring back. I blushed and quickly turned away, my friends didn't seem to notice. But the other Cullen girl, Rosalie did, she reminded me of a cheerleader from another world. She had wavy blonde hair that came down past her shoulder and a major attitude. They all shared the same amazing eyes, which I found strange since they were all supposedly adopted. Jasper and Rosalie being the only ones actually related. "Bella?" Angela interrupted my thoughts again.
"Sorry Angie, but there's a book that I'm really looking forward to reading. Maybe next weekend though." I finally responded. The bell rang signaling for us to head to class. I gathered my stuff and started to make my way out of the cafeteria. I had almost reached the doors when someone tapped on my shoulders. I turned around ready to back up my excuse again and nearly jumped out of my pants.
"Hi! I'm Alice!" She said cheerily.
"Bella, you're in my math class right?" I asked trying to be casual.
"Yep, two seats back. I don't mean to impose or anything but I overheard you talking to your friends. I kinda got the feeling you don't like shopping at the mall. So, I wanted to invite you to go shopping with me in Seattle two weeks from now." She looked so hopeful. "We would get a hotel room and just stay the entire weekend. My sister Rose is going out of town with Emmett, so it would be just us."
"I'd love to, but I don't think Charlie will let me." I explained.
"Let me ask him, parents love me!" She offered.
"Okay, if you think it will work. Meet me in the parking lot after school and we can go to my house and plan our weekend." I couldn't help the excitement coursing through my body as I talked to her, not to mention that my heart was beating a million miles an hour.
"Okie dokie, see you soon!" She practically skipped away. I wandered happily off to class. I entered my English class and took my usual seat next to Angie. She was looking through the book we were currently reading. She looked up when I sat down.
"So what did Alice want?" She asked excitedly, closing her book.
"She wants to take me shopping in Seattle in two weeks." I replied nonchalantly, pulling my book out.
"Please tell me you said yes!"
"Why?" I asked curiously. I began flipping through the pages to find where we left off.
"No one ever hangs out with them, they literally have no friends here." She replied. "You would be the first one. That would be a major popularity boost." She explained.
"I said yes but I'm doing it for the friendship, not the popularity. Alice is pretty cool, plus she's taking me to Seattle for the entire weekend. Who does that for someone they barely know?" I kept thinking about being alone with Alice for an entire weekend, the thought made me nervous.
"Thats awesome! I wish I had friends that did stuff like that." Angela pulled out her English book as our teacher began talking, I followed suit. The rest of the day went by so slow that I swore the clock actually stopped at one point. I was so happy when I reached my sixth period class that I could have the bell rang at the end of class, I packed up my bag and headed towards the parking lot. When I reached the sidewalk I could see all of the Cullens hanging out by my truck. My cheeks got warmer and warmer as I approached them.
"Bella!" Emmett shouted excitedly. It was almost as if we'd been friends for years. "You're brave going shopping with Alice. She's a shopaholic, you're definately in for a long weekend." He commented as I arrived.
"I'm not that bad Emmett, now go away so Bella and I can make plans." She shooed her siblings away and we climbed into my truck. "So, any specific stores you like?" Alice asked making small talk. It felt like I was dreaming, Alice Cullen was sitting in my truck. I was so nervous I was starting to shake.
"I mostly like bookstores." It took everything I had to answer. I took a deep breath to calm myself and turned the key making my truck roar to life. I jumped and then felt stupid jumping at the sound of my own truck. "So, you like to read then? What's your favorite book?" She asked.
"Wuthering Heights. I prefer the classics." It was killing me to be so close to her, I could barely focus on the road.
"That's great! Not a lot of teens like the classics." Alice responded.
"Most people think I'm weird for liking the classics."
"I don't think you're weird at all." I smiled at that and we drove the rest of the way in silence.
"Okay, so this is my house." I said as we pulled into the drive. I saw that the police cruiser was gone. "Charlie should be back soon, do you want to hang out for a while?"I shut the truck off.
"Okay, I actually really want to see your room." She said excitedly. It was almost like she had never gone to a friends house before. I giggled at the thought, Alice turned and looked at me.
"What's so funny?" She asked smiling. I wish I could freeze time, that smile made me melt. She had the most perfect luscious pink lips and teeth so white ,they could blend in with snow. And her honey colored eyes twinkled like stars on a cloudless night. I took a deep breath to recollect myself.
"It's just cool that you're so excited. How long can you stay?"
"As long as you want to have me." She said happily.
"You can be out that late?"
"Yeah, as long as my grades are good, I can kinda do whatever." I was envious, Charlie had set me a curfew of ten O'Clock. We got out of the truck and I pulled out my house key as we aproached the door.
"Are you thirsty? I think there's some soda in the fridge." I offered as we entered the house.
"No thank you." She grabbed my hand and pulled me up the stairs. I felt the electricity from her touch shoot up my arm. I suddenly felt unbearabley warm, but then I also noticed how cold Alice's hand was.
"Oh my gosh! Your hand is freezing, do you want a jacket or a sweater or something?" I offered stopping halfway up the stairs.
"Oh yeah, umm, I get cold like that all the time. I don't really notice it. I've been to a specialist and it's just bad circulation." More like no circulation. I followed her into my bedroom. She stopped and took a look around. Her eyes landed on my baby picture. "Awww, you were such a cute baby!" She said happily. I blushed feeling really embarrased.
"So..." Now came the really awkward silence."What kind of music do you like?" I asked sitting on the edge of my bed. She bounced over to the bed and sat down next to me.
"Pop mostly, but i listen to some classical too." This was a lot more awkward than I expected and I hoped to god that Charlie got home soon. I kind of wished that Angie was with me so we weren't so alone. I felt something cold touch my hand and I looked up, Alice had scooted a little closer and her hand was touching mine. Her skin was so soft, like baby skin. I looked up and our eyes met, I felt myself getting lost in her eyes. She suddenly looked so innocent and naive. I was very tempted to run my hands through her short black hair, it looked really soft."You should come to my house tomorrow night." Alice said suddenly making me jump. "You could spend the night! It would be so much fun!"
"Yeah that would be great. I've never been to a sleepover." All night at Alice's sounded nerve wracking, but I had to admit I really wanted to go. But dropping all of these sudden plans on Charlie probably wouldn't go over well. I decided I'd ask him about the sleepover first and the trip later. "I'm going to wait till Monday to ask my dad about our trip to Seattle. He's more likely to say yes that way." I added.
"That's probably a good idea." Alice commented after a moment of silence. It was then that I heard Charlie pull into the driveway.
"There he is, come on, I'll introduce you." We both got up off of the bed and headed down stairs. We found Charlie in the kitchen raiding the fridge. In all of the excitement of having Alice over, I'd forgotten to make dinner.
"Hey dad, this is Alice." I introduced him. He closed the fridge and turned around upon hearing my voice.
"Nice to meet you Alice." He said politely as he shook her hand.
"Nice to meet you too, sir." Alice smiled her charming smile.
"Dad, I was wondering if it would be okay for me to spend the night with Alice this weekend." I asked hopefully. I glanced at Alice who stood awkwardly next to me.
"Is it going to be just the two of you?" He asked curiously.
"No, her parents will be there." I could see the hesitation in his eyes and apparently so could Alice.
"My three brothers are going camping. So it will just be me and my sister Rose and my parents." She explained trying to make him feel comfortable.
"I guess so...but I want a phonecall from you when you get there." I saw Alice grinning next to me.
"Thanks dad. I promise I won't do anything stupid." My dad chuckled as Alice proceeded to grab my hand and drag me back upstairs. We ended up fully packing my bag and then she helped me study for my math test. She was amazingly smart, math seemed to come to her like second nature. Before I knew it, it was 1130 and I was starting to drift off. We were looking through her favorite fashion magazine to get some ideas for the weekend in Seattle. I really hoped my dad would let me go.
"I better let you get some rest." She said looking me over. I made a pouty face at her.
"I don't want you to leave, I'm having so much fun. All my other friends just talk about hot boys, mainly your brother Edward." She laughed at that.
"Do you think Edward is hot?" She asked, suddenly getting serious.
"No, no offense to him or anything but he's just not my type." Plus liking your friends brother just makes things awkward.
"Oh...Is there anyone you do like at our school?" That was a question I dreaded.
"I don't really like to talk about who I like. This person would never have feelings for me anyway." I said trying to avoid answering.
"Why not? You're very beautiful." She commented, I blushed again. I saw a smirk flash across her face, but only for a split second. Did she know? My heart started pounding again. How could she possibly know, I'd never told anyone who I secretlly liked. "Come on, Please tell me." She pleaded. "I really wanna know."
"I'll tell on our trip okay? I've never told anyone who I really like before and I'm kinda embarrassed about it." I replied.
"Okay, but you have to promise me." Alice said smiling. I smiled back at her.
"Okay, I promise." I yawned and laid my head down on the bed and felt my eyes closing. I expected Alice to try to leave again. But instead she ran her fingers through my hair as she laid next to me. Within minutes I was fast asleep. I woke the next morning a little confused. I was in a pair of my brand new pajamas that my mom gave me every christmas but i never really wore and tucked under my blankets. I smiled realizing Alice had put me to bed, but then I panicked when I realized she had dressed me also. I looked at my clock, it read 6:15. I rolled out of bed and wandered over to my closet to pick out some clothes for the day. I chose my Lucky brand jeans and a green striped sweater hoodie. After I was dressed and my hair was fixed I headed downstairs for some breakfast. I made myself some scrambled eggs, my dad was already gone. He left a note on the fridge for me, I pulled it off to read as I sat at the table eating my eggs.
Bells,
Sorry I had to go into work so soon. I hope you have a good time at your sleepover. I wont get to see you before you leave, so I love you and please be careful. Call me when you get there
Love,
Dad
I smiled and set my plate in the sink. I ran back upstairs and grabbed my travel bag and back pack and headed out to my truck. I opened the door and tossed both of my bags in, climbing in after them. Today was definitely going to be a long day, I was way to excited to hang out with Alice again to focus on school. I was also excited to ride in Alice's Porsche, I'd seen her driving it through town and it was a really nice car. I pulled into the school parking lot to find Alice waiting for me. I smiled and pulled into a parking space and jumped out of my truck. "Hey Alice!" I said as I walked up to her.
"Hi Bella! Are you ready for our sleepover?" She asked enthusiastically.
"Yep, I have my bag in my truck. It sucks that we have to finish the school day first." I commented.
"I don't think Charlie would let me take you out of town if we skip school the first day we hang out together. I'm sure it will go by fast." She said as we walked into school together. "I want to know how you do on your math test. I expect nothing lower than a b." She said as we headed off to first period. I started the day with history, which was also Edward and Jessica's first class. I took my seat next to Edward, but he didn't so much as look at me. I guess being friends with his sister didn't change the fact that he didn't talk to anyone. I pulled out my history book, a piece of paper, and a pen.
"Okay, let's get started on chapter ten. I want you to read to yourselves and take notes and we will go over it in about fifteen minutes." Our history teacher was one of those teacher you could tell didn't really want to be a teacher. We spent more time reading to ourselves than actually being taught. I opened my history book to chapter ten and got started."Bella." I looked up to see who was talking to me and to my surprise, it was Edward.
"What?" I whispered, wondering what he could possibly need to say to me.
"I know you have a sleepover thing with Alice this weekend. But I was wondering if you wanted to go to a movie next weekend?" Oh snap! He wasn't seriously asking me on a date, was he? I don't think I could handle liking Alice but dating Edward. I had no clue what to say, so out of total confusion I blurted out the first thing to come to mind.
"Okay." I mentally slapped myself for saying yes. I didn't want to lead the guy on. I could tell by the smile on his face as he got to work that that was exactly what I was doing. I turned my focus towards my studies, hoping I would find a way out of bell rang and I quickly gathered my stuff.
"What's the hurry?" Edward asked laughing. I slung my backpack over my shoulder.
"I have a math test next period. I want to study with Alice a little more before I take it." That was partially the truth. I hurried out of the room without looking back once.I entered my math class and sat down next to Alice. I ran my hands through my hair and sighed, this was bad.
"Are you okay? You look really worried." Alice touched my shoulder, I could feel myself starting to calm down. Even though her hand was cold her skin was so soft. I wanted so badly to run my hands all over her body and find out if she was that soft all over.
"I just made big mistake and I'm not sure how to fix it." I started to explain. "I mean Edward's a nice guy and all but he's not really my type." I watched as Alice's facial expression changed. She took her hand off my arm.
"Did you kiss him?" Was I mistaken or was she upset about this?
"No...he asked me to go to a movie and I panicked and said yes." It was at this moment that our teacher entered the room. "We can talk later, at your house."
"Here are your tests, good luck." The teacher passed out the test. I took mine and got to work immediately. Studying with Alice had helped immensely, I felt very confident that I was doing great. I took the full hour to finish my test and made sure I rechecked each answer. The bell rang as I turned my paper in and I could feel Alice right behind me.
"Why don't you go to the movie with him. Then after you can tell him that you would rather just be friends. That way you're at least giving the relationship a chance but you're being honest with him too." Alice suggested as we gathered our stuff.
"I guess that would work." I replied as we entered the busy hallways."I'll see you at lunch." I said as we turned in opposite directions.
"See you later." I heard her call after me. It was killing me to keep these feelings to myself. I wanted so badly just to kiss her, even just for a second. I wanted to feel her soft lips on mine, her cool hands caressing my body. I smiled at the thought as I made my way to my next class.
When I arrived at our table for lunch I found Edward and Alice sitting at our table. I suddenly wanted to be anywhere else. The only empty chair was between the two Cullen's. I took a deep breath smiled at my friends and sat down with my soda and sandwhich. I knew everyone at the table was watching me waiting for an explanation for Edward suddenly being at our table too. I felt Alice touch my leg under the table in an attempt to calm me down. It seemed to only make things worse as I felt excitement rush through me. "So, which movie are you and Bella going to go see?" Alice asked helping me break the news.
"What?" The look on Mike's face was priceless.