A/N: Hello! Thank you for giving my story a chance. I hope you learn to love Lauren the way I have through my research and brainstorming. The best type of characters are those who are unsung…I hope to give Lauren the song she deserves. Since she never made into the movies, I visualize her as Dylan Frances Penn (daughter of Sean Penn and Robin Wright) or Lea Seydoux. Cheers!

Anything in italics is a flashback or past event.

…..

I silently type numbers into the antiquated machine. 1...2….4….5…

Behind me, the grill sizzles aggressively as the cook unloads a bag of frozen hash browns on its charcoal-black surface. I glace up, observing the languid activity of the diner through my blond bangs as they dangle limply from the crown of my head. The bell at the entrance rings, and Charlie Swan enters, stiffly shaking show flakes from his greying hair. I lift my chin and meet his gaze. He smiles at me warmly.

"Welcome, chief!" Tracy yells from the kitchen entrance. A charming, bosomy lady, Tracy is the proud owner of "Forks and Knives"; the most cherished little mom and pop diner this side of the Indian reservations. Chief Swan is a frequent visitor, and one of the more beloved customers by the staff and patrons. I personally look forward to his frequent patronage.

I pocket my notepad and pen as I grab the handle of the closest coffee pot, and make my way around the counter. Even before I reach his table, Chief Swan greets me jovially.

"Lauren! How are you? I like your hair today." He holds out the plain white mug. I smile through the slurping of the coffee waterfall as it twists into his mug, quickly filling it with the dark chocolate-colored warmth.

"Thank you, chief! It's good to see you again. Lots of wrecks with the snow?" I know this is a stupid question. Of course I know the answer to it. Yet, with Charlie Swan, small talk didn't feel like a chore. His easy manners, somewhat unassuming charm, and attention to detail always make him welcome company.

He's also a generous tipper.

Charlie sighs. "Damn out of towners…always panicking at the sight of a little snow. The locals are plenty confident with it. It's so simple, you know? Just lay off the damn breaks and don't let little slips and slides make you overcorrect. There was a couple from Arizona today…" His voice fades into the back of my consciousness as movement from my periphery catches my attention. I can still hear Chief Swan murmuring, caught enthusiastically in his story about the Arizonians. I gaze at the glass door as Bella Swan and Edward Cullen gracefully enter.

What an unwelcome sight.

"Have you guys seen the new girl? Bella Swan?" Tyler Crowley's knee banged against the bottom of our cafeteria table as he sat up anxiously. Jessica laughs flirtatiously, eyeing Mike as she does. He's looking elsewhere. Typical Mike.

"She's not due here for another week, Tyler. God." Angela glances up from her phone mid-sentence, "I know you're tired of the pickings here, but there's no guarantee that she'll even be everything you hope and dream."

What Angela didn't know is that her words stung me. Fact is, I'd always had a puppy-dog crush on Tyler, and I hardly thought of myself as a "picking". Hell, I thought I was pretty wonderful. At the time, it was pretty apparent that most everyone regarded me as the prettiest girl at school. It's hard to not be vain in that light, but I did have a perfectly symmetrical face, golden blond hair, the type of cheekbones that would wow Tyra Banks into giving me a modeling contract, and a strong jawline.

Needless to say, I wasn't too fond of Bella Swan's growing popularity, just shy of her imminent arrival. My god, word traveled quickly. Across the lunchroom, I noticed Edward Cullen glancing from student to student. Now, that was a confusing thing.

I mean, the guy was clearly the most beautiful person here, even in contrast to his beautiful siblings. In my opinion, his chosen seclusion and dangerous flirtation with a superiority complex brought him from an 11 to a 10 on the hotness scale.

In retrospect, I definitely wanted him.

Chief Swan's digression and my thoughts are both interrupted by the noticeable silence that cloaks the room as Bella and Edward weave between the tables toward Charlie and me. He nods carefully at Edward, and rises to hug Bella. I hear him mutter "don't crush me, honey. Little softer" into her ear. That was kind of a weird thing to say…Edward looks right through me as if he detected my distaste and confusion. I nod at him curtly, intentionally ignoring Bella as I mumble "I'll let you have a few minutes to decide."

I sigh as I return to my position behind the counter. My back turned to the dining area, I fumble with the brown and saturated coffee filter in an attempt to remove it from the machine. Tracy meanders to my side, and she hands me a new filter.

"Hey…it's okay." Her bony hand rubs my back. Tracy is one of the few people who know the truth. With each scoop of coffee I dump into the filter basket, I fight the urge to quietly slip into the kitchen. I resist the repulsion, the rising feeling of panic that seeing Bella Swan triggers. I wish I could understand why it is her, of all the people I know, who has that kind of power over me. After all, Bella Swan never did anything to me personally. I always knew that my distaste toward her was unjustified. The only thing Bella Swan ever did was move to a new school.

But it was the way that her rising popularity had destroyed my image as the "cool girl". The desirable one. Nothing about her was even better than me, per se, but every boy in the school nearly sprained their ankles running to her. Kneecaps were nearly blown as they threw themselves at her feet. The worst part? She barely even noticed. In the event that she did notice, she would quickly rebuff any advances. I remember the night that Jessica cried in my room after Mike rejected her invitation to the spring dance. Apparently, he was more interested in Bella Swan than the girl who had actively pursued him since junior high. Jessica was inconsolable for nearly a week, even after Mike reluctantly agreed to go with her.

At that time, the validation that desirability brought was what I needed. It was something I craved passionately. I had already been given an advantage with a beautiful face and perfect figure. With that in play, my personality was hardly a consideration in my rise to popularity. I liked to always think of myself as a relatively nice person. But the rejection…the almost abrupt ignoring from the student body made my stomach drop.

The fact of the matter: there was a lot going on that Bella Swan and my fellow students would never know. Even Charlie Swan, in his thorough understanding of happenings in Forks, never suspected. His friendliness to me was related to the death of my father, a shocking event that gave me the freedom I had always craved. It would allow me to finally begin working through the horrors.

Without the affection of my peers, without the safety in popularity that saved me each week day, it seemed that I wouldn't feel safe anywhere.

During high school, I could barely make it through the week without my father forcing himself on me.

….

A/N: Chapter 2 is on its way…depending on whether or not Chapter 1 gets good feedback.

Chapter 1 Playlist:

"Hallelujah" by Rufus Wainwright

"Shatter Me" by Lindsey Stirling, featuring Lzzy Hale

"Last Hope" by Paramore