A/N 1--I just made some small changes, and spelling corrections. :)
A/N 2-- I'm very sorry for the wait. I had meant to post this chapter the following day, but I was having some sound issues with the copy of The Covenant that I had downloaded so I had to find another copy. Plus my computers just really slow at downloading. So anyways here you go, as promised Bella meets the boys.
Ok now just want to set things straight so we're all on the same page. Bella never went cliff diving so nothing from the books after that point happened she reverted back to her zombie state and Charlie sent her to Spencer. And Victoria hasn't come into the picture yet. And this takes place after The Covenant ended.
Pogue's with Kate, Caleb's with Sarah.
And I'd just like to thank the people who reviewed. It was awesome having such positive feedback.
Enjoy!
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Chapter 2
I felt slight shock register on my face. This school was massive! It had several buildings apart from the main one. I guessed some of the other ones were the dorms. I stared out the window of the taxi. Charlie was wrong if he thought I would heal in this place. It was surrounded by woods, just like his house had been. Just like all of Forks was. It seemed just as rainy to. I hadn't bothered doing much research on the place so I wasn't sure if it was always this wet.
The taxi jerked to a stop in front of the doors opening up to the main building. I grabbed my two duffel bags as Charlie paid the driver and grabbed the rest of my luggage from the trunk of the car. I paused at the bottom of the steps as Charlie passed me. I ignored the rain pounding down on me as I stared up at the school. My new home for the year. It looked ancient and gothic. It was a beautiful building.
"Bells?" Charlie's voice was concerned, the tone questioning.
I made him worry far to much. I tried to smile, but I could feel it mangle on my face. No wonder he was leaving me here. I was a bad actress. Good thing that wasn't my career choice, I'd wind up a poor beggar on the streets.
"Coming!" I tried to sound enthusiastic.
Students milled about us as we walked through the halls to the Provost's office. I could feel the stares some of them shot me, it didn't bother me though, it turned out that I was very good at tuning out the world.
"Here we are Bella." Charlie said as he grabbed my elbow gently and steered me into the office.
There was an older woman sitting behind a desk. She had greying hair that was pinned up in a tight bun at the back of her head. And she had thin wire framed glasses that slid down her long nose.
"Can I help you." Her tone was crisp and business like.
"Uh, yes, we're here to see Provost Higgins."
"Name?"
"Charlie and Isabella Swan." My dad told her.
" Ah yes. Just a moment, you can have a seat over there while you wait." She pointed us in the direction of a row of seats by the door before disappearing into another room which I took to be the Provost's office.
It was several minutes before she reappeared. Several minutes for me to start fidgeting, several minutes for me to get nervous. I wasn't nervous about meeting the Provost, or even my new school. It was Charlie. Tonight was his last night in Ipswich. There had been some trouble with my schedule and getting my records from Forks high school so I'd spent the last two weeks touring Ipswich with my father. And now I was worried that when he left I would have no reason to keep up the act. I could feel the hole tearing open already.
I wrapped my hands subconsciously around my torso. My expression must have been pained because the secretary gave me a concerned look after coming out of the Provost's office.
"Are you alright?" She asked, her tone had lost it's crispness and was more concerned.
"Bells?" Charlie looked at me then.
I could see the worry in his eyes.
"I'm fine!" I pasted a fake smile in place.
"Alright, Provost Higgins will see you now."
We spent over a half hour in the office talking with the Provost. He welcomed me to the school and answered all of Charlie's questions. Charlie was just about to hand over the check for the admission fees when he dropped it on the floor. I hurried to pick it up. My jaw went slack and I could feel it hanging open. Twenty-five thousand! How in god's name was he paying for this?!
" Not now Bells." Charlie stopped me from saying anything and took the check handing it to the Provost.
"Well I suppose you'll be wanting to get settled in." That said the Provost handed me an envelope and my uniform and sent us on our way.
I emptied the envelope out in the office and found my room key and number and my schedule. My room was in building one, room two hundred.
" Alright let's go find your room." Charlie threw an arm around my shoulder and we left the main building.
I didn't even care that his arm was there. There had been a time when this would have embarrassed me but I didn't care now.
We found my room fairly easily. And that was where we would part ways for a year.
" Well Bells, here we are." I could sense Charlie's awkwardness.
He hated expressing emotions, just like me.
"Yeah. I'll miss you dad." I told him.
And it was true. I could feel the tears coming, but I willed them away for the moment. Just then he pulled me in for a crushing hug.
" Take care of yourself Bella."
"I will...Now go I don't want you to miss your plane." I shoved him away gently, smiling for him as I sniffed back tears.
I dragged my luggage and bags into the room and collapsed on the bed. I hugged my stomach where I felt the hole, and pulled my knees up so I lay curled in a ball as the tears took me.
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I must have fallen asleep because when I woke up it was dark out and I could hear someone moving around in the room. I sat up slowly, throwing my legs over the side of the bed.
"Ah, hey your up! I'm Kate." I guess I have a roommate I hadn't really paid much attention to the room before, but now I could see there was another bed and pictures and posters. "And your Isabella right."
"Just Bella." I told her.
I tried to keep my voice friendly, and smile. But from the shadow of concern on her face I guess it wasn't working, I guess I couldn't really fool anyone.
" Are you alright?"
" I'm fine." I told her, trying to laugh it off as nothing.
She didn't by it, But thankfully she jumped to the wrong conclusion. I didn't want to have to lie about it.
" I bet your homesick huh? That's cool I know what'll cheer you up. A night out." I was confused now. Was she inviting me out?
" So what do you say? Come hang out with me and the guys tonight." She seemed really nice, but I just wasn't in the mood to make friends.
I wanted to live out my zombie existence in peace. No more friends, no more attachments. I wanted as little as possible to do with people.
" I'm sorry I'm just really tired. Maybe another time." I offered.
" Come on! It'll be fun!" I could see she wouldn't settle for no, like a certain pixie I knew.
I mentally winced at the thought. It wasn't so hard to think of Alice, I could even think her name. But it hurt too.
With a sigh I agreed to go with her. She was going someplace called Nicky's to meet up with her boyfriend and his friends.
" Great!" Her face lit up with her enthusiasm. " We're leaving in ten minutes."
Ten minutes left me little time to get ready. Which was perfectly fine, I had no reason to look nice anymore. I threw on a pair of faded jeans and a white tank top and jean jacket. I left my hair as it was, hanging in waves around my face and down my back.
Thankfully Kate liked to talk. She reminded me a little of Jessica Stanley, she seemed more friendly though. She talked about everything, told me all about the school. And her boyfriend and his friends. They were called the sons of Ipswich. I didn't bother to ask why.
"Here we are." She shut the car off in front of a bar.
I could hear the music out here and there was people coming in and out. It looked like a fairly busy place. I got out and followed Kate inside. They didn't really have anything like this in Forks. There was a dance floor over near a juke box. There were pool tables and a bar of course.
She led me to a table near the back just in front of some Foosball tables where two boys were playing.
"Hey!" Kate hugged a blond girl that was already seated at the table.
"Bella this is Sarah. Sarah this is Bella, my new room mate since you decided to leave me for Caleb's house." She said teasingly.
"His house beats the dorms." Sarah said with a laugh.
Just then the two boys playing Foosball came over to our table.
"Who's this?" One of them asked, looking at me.
He had straight light brown hair.
"Pogue, this is Bella, Bella this is Pogue Parry."
"Hi." I said, my voice quiet.
"Hey." He said before turning his attention to Kate.
He bent and kissed her, I really didn't want to be here. Watching them. It brought back memories of me and him. He left after asking if she wanted anything, I assumed he was getting food.
"Hi, I'm Caleb." The other boy offered.
With a jolt I realized his eye's were almost the same color as Edward's, I mentally winced at his name barely managing to keep my face neutral, were when he was hungry. And his hair was in the same messy state.
"I'm Bella."
I noticed he had his arm around Sarah. Great. I was going to be surrounded by couples. This was too much to take on my first day here. This was too much to take ever. It was too hard to be around normal people, happy people. With normal lives.
"I'm sorry Kate I'm not feeling well. I'm gonna go." I told her.
I didn't want to stay here with them all. My face must have given something away because hers turned sympathetic in answer.
"Alright, let me say bye to Pogue and I'll take you back."
I could see she was disappointed at leaving him. Why did I have to cause everyone around me trouble? I made up my mind then that I wouldn't let that happen here.
" It's fine really I can get a taxi."
"Taxi's aren't the safest form of transportation here." This time it was Caleb who spoke. " I can drive you and Sarah need to leave anyway."
There was something about Caleb that reminded me of Jacob. He seemed to have some of the same personality. Of course I couldn't be sure of that yet, I'd known him all of five minutes. But he made me feel better, like Jacob had. Maybe it was his expression. He had the same calming expression and his eyes lit up the same way to. Though with Jake his eyes had lit up for me, Caleb's lit up for Sarah. But still he had a calming air about him.
" I don't want to-"
"Really it's no problem." He assured me.
"Alright thanks." I told him as the three of us left.
" Feel better." Kate told me.
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Terribly sorry I had meant to introduce all of the boys into the story but I'm gonna end it here for now Reid and Tyler will definitely make their appearance in the next chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it! And please tell me what you think.
Undeniably Yours x
