Chapter 1

High School

I was sitting in the school cafeteria with Alice, Jasper, Rosalie and Emmet, waiting for lunch to end. High School was my personal hell on earth. One might think after all these decades I would have come to terms with the disadvantages of trying to blend in, but unfortunately that was not the case. The worst part was having to listen to THEM day in day out. Humans are slow and incredibly dull, and unfortunately it is my job to ensure that none of them find out who, or better what, we are. Today they were occupied with a new addition to the small student body here in Forks. Already the minds of the sheep-like males at the school were all, with a few exceptions, focused on her. Claire Butler. From the glimpses I caught of her in their minds I decided she was pretty but nothing special. A typical sun-tanned teenager, probably from somewhere in the south.

After a couple of minutes I blocked out the others' minds, save for those of my family. Although I tried not to listen to my siblings I had become too attuned to their thoughts. Rosalie was thinking about her Porsche contemplating whether or not she should polish it again this weekend. Emmett was still disgruntled over the wrestling match he had lost to Jasper, who in turn was fondly remembering his victory. The person whose mind I was most attuned to was Alice. If I had to choose she was probably my favourite sibling. Her usually bright thoughts had a dark edge to them today as she was thinking about her past again. Although our human memories were weaker than our vampire ones, the rest of us could still remember our past before we were turned into vampires. Alice was the exception. She had no recollection whatsoever of her brief human life and so far all her attempts to uncover information about her past had been to no avail. At the moment she was thinking about chasing down a lead in Texas, sifting through visions of the future to determine whether or not it would lead her anywhere. I briefly placed my hand on her arm in an attempt to comfort her and she flicked me quick smile. The motion of my hand had caught Jasper's attention and he was immediately concerned, tasting the emotions around her. Alice just shook her head at him and he relaxed a little. He did not know about Alice's plans and I had no intention of informing him. Although I could not always stay out of their heads I tried my hardest not to reveal any of the thoughts my family had, I owed them at least that much.

I was relieved to hear the loud ring of the school bell signalling that lunch was, at last, over. This meant only two classes until I could finally leave this dreadful place.

Emmett and I walked together to Spanish, a class which I probably minded the least as our teacher, Mrs. Goff, left me in peace, knowing full well my knowledge of the language exceeded hers. After Spanish I had PE, this time with Alice. All of us loathed that class, especially Emmett, as we always had to hold back to ensure that none of the humans became suspicious. Today we played badminton. Coach Clapp asked us to pair up and of course Alice and I were teammates. Most humans noticed we were different, though they could never quite say why, and had the good sense to stay away. Suddenly the door to the gym opened and the new girl entered

"Sorry, I'm late; I got lost on my way to class." She looked embarrassed.

"That's alright, don't worry about it", Coach Clapp smiled at her. "Why don't you pair up with Mike Newton and play against Alice and Edward?"

"Of course, thank you"

Mike seemed only too eager to have her as a partner and quickly made his way towards us. I suppressed a groan. Having to listen to his mind was tiring at the best of times, but the girl's effect on him made it almost unbearable.

I wonder if she likes me. I'd better put on a good show today to impress her. Damn, she's hot…

Fortunately the coach blew his whistle and Mike lost his train of thought trying to hit the birdie over the net.

The girl was good; I had to give her that. She was fast and had a relatively good aim, something which could not be said for Mike. Nonetheless she was no match for Alice and me, despite the fact that we occasionally missed the birdie on purpose in order to appear normal. Alice was still distracted, thinking about Texas, when Mike, in an effort to prove himself, swung his racket a little too enthusiastically and hit the girl in the back of the neck. She barely flinched, but my curiosity at her unusual response was immediately washed away when I smelled her blood.