Please be kind.

I was not in the best of moods. The electricity had been cut off in my room late last night, so my alarm clock never went off. I woke up instead to my mother shaking me awake at 6:30. Unless I could get ready quickly, I would be late for my very first day of school. So I dashed into the shower and dressed as fast as possible. I grabbed a breakfast bar and dashed out the door. My mom had caught a ride to the elementary school with a fellow teacher. Thanks to my speeding, I made it to school with a few minutes to spare.

Once I had parked, I realized I had no idea where I was supposed to go. The office was a good start, so I headed over there. The first bell rang as I walked in the front door. A kind looking woman with frizzy red hair sat behind the counter. I exhaled and walked up to her.

"Excuse me ma'am." Her eyes lit up as I smiled, trying to be as charming as possible. "Today is my first day here and I just realized I have no idea where I'm supposed to be." I chuckled. "My name is Edward Masen."

The woman, I saw her nameplate said 'Ms. Cope', giggled. "As yes. It's a good thing you came here, Mr. Masen. I have your schedule right here." She smiled shyly, handing it to me. "I can direct you to your next class if you'd like. Or I can ask one of the aides here to do it." She amended quickly, reddening slightly.

As I looked over my classes, a girl was long blond hair came up behind her. I had an awkward feeling that she wasn't thinking the most innocent of thoughts right now. Something about the way she was looking at me gave me the creeps. "Well hello. The name's Lauren." She smiled what she must have thought was an attractive smile. However it just made me feel uneasy.

I shook my head. "No, that's okay. I've toured the campus before. The English building isn't too far away. But thank you." I added at her crestfallen expression.

As I turned to leave, Ms. Cope called back to me. "Oh! I had nearly forgot! You need to get all of your teachers to sign this today, Mr. Masen." I accepted the slip of paper with another smile. She blushed again. "A-and don't forget you need to return that directly to me today. So I'll see you after school."

"Thank you, Ms. Cope." I waved at Lauren politely. She giggled. I rushed out of the room feeling uncomfortable again.

I followed a group of students to a brick building with a large, black number 3 on the outside. I ducked into the assigned room as the bell rang. Every eye in the classroom watched me as I walked to the teacher's desk. She looked up at me with a kind smile. "Mr. Masen, I take it?" I nodded and handed her the slip. "Would you like to introduce yourself while I sign this?" She waved her hand towards the other students.

I sighed. "Okay. My name is Edward Masen. I moved here from central Chicago. Um… my mother got a job at the elementary school. So, yeah." I looked back at the teacher. She handed the paper and motioned for me to take the empty seat near the back of the room. I tried to ignore the constant whispers as I took the last desk.

A girl with milky gold eyes and short black smiled at me. I returned the gesture. Unlike that Lauren girl's grin, this one seemed kind and sincere. "Hello Edward Masen." I could feel my mouth hanging open slightly. Her voice was musical, almost as if she was about to break out in song. She laughed quietly. "My name is Alice Cullen. I was a new kid in freshman year. Don't worry; the staring will pass. Eventually."

I nodded. "I should hope so." I grumbled as another girl turned in her seat noticeably to gape at me. She had brown, curly hair and was sort of short. Granted, not as short as Alice, but still short. When she noticed I was watching her back, she winked and turned back to face the teacher. I shivered violently. My new friend covered her mouth with her hand, trying and failing to hide her laughter at my expense. I felt my face heat up, but kept my attention on the lesson.

As I has expected, it was a boring class. I found it hard to understand how students at the junior level were only just now discussing Shakespeare. I had already done the Midsummer's Night Dream, Macbeth, Hamlet, The Taming of the Shrew, and King Leer units. And naturally, I could recite Romeo and Juliet backwards from memory. I groaned quietly and rested my head on my elbow as the teacher explained Shakespeare's use of dramatic irony in his plays.

Alice raised an eyebrow as I stared off into space. "What's with you? This stuff boring you already?" She herself was doodling on a blank piece of paper.

I smirked and pointed to her paper. "Like you are one to talk." I drummed my fingers on the desk. "I've already learned this stuff. We covered it in freshman year at my old school." I admitted.

Alice yawned. "Yeah, I know what you mean. I've heard these things it's so often, I almost feel like I could teach it better then she does." She mirrored my grin. "'O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?' First lesson: Juliet was a bit crazy and was talking to herself. I mean, who does that?"

I was having a hard time trying not to burst out laughing. "True enough. Second lesson: Romeo was a jerk. What kind of guy is madly in love with Rosaline, then jumps ship a few seconds later to marry a 14-year-old girl?" We laughed quietly as the sheer stupidity of the star-crossed lovers. I could sense a deep friendship growing with this girl.

The bell rang a few minutes later. "Tomorrow we will discuss the affections of love verses lust!" Alice and I cracked up again as the teacher called the lesson plans out after her class. We gathered our things slowly.

"So what's your next class?"

I pulled out my class list again. "Uh… French with Madame LaRue. Foreign Language hall, building 7." At least that class might be fun; I'd only taken Spanish at my old school. I looked up at her. "What do you have?"

She shook her head. "Gym. Oh joy." We turned and started out the door. But the curly haired girl from before stopped in front of us. Alice had whispered her name was Jessica Stanley, the gossip queen of Forks. Alice looked away so Jessica wouldn't see her laughing.

The girl flipped her hair. "Hi there. I noticed you looking at me during class." She giggled. "My name's Jess. It's very nice to meet you." 'Jess' tilted her head a little forward to watch me through her eyelashes.

"Right. Nice to meet you too Jessica." She reminded me of the Lauren girl from the office. "Well, I have to get going to French."

Jessica hopped on the balls of her feet. "Ohh! That's my next class too! I could walk you." She offered with a flirty smile. I glared at Alice for help.

Alice elbowed me lightly. "Actually, I was going to show him how to get there. Thanks for offering though." The smaller girl hugged my arm tightly, dragging me out of the room. Jessica shot daggers at us before storming away.

Once in the hall, we really did burst out laughing. "Okay, I owe you big time, Alice Cullen!" She waved a finger at me.

"Ah ah! No way. It's the least I could do for my new friend. Besides, I wouldn't wish Jessica Stanley and her over the top flirting on anyone."

I shivered again. "She's just as bad as that Lauren girl."

"Oh, you ran into her too?" I explained how she had tried to flirt with me in the office. "Sheesh Edward. First day here and already breaking hearts." Her golden eyes brightened as she mocked me. We finally reached the F.L. building.

I shiftily looked around a few times. "Okay Alice, the coast is clear. No Jessica in sight!" I offered her a low high five. She slapped my hand with more force then I would have thought possible from the tiny girl.

"Mission accomplished!" She turned around to skip to class, but called to me over her shoulder. "Hey, come sit with my family at lunch, okay? I'll save you a seat!" She waved before hurrying off.

"Thanks!" I called after the retreating Alice. Then I walked into the classroom. Madame LaRue waved me back to her desk. She signed my sheet and told me to sit anywhere.

Jessica sought me out immediately as she walked through the door. She dragged me to a table she shared with some blond guy named Mike Newton; the guy from my English class, Ben Cheney; and a quite girl named Angela Webber. Angela smiled at me and asked how I was my fist day going. I told her honestly that it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Jessica clung to my side like she was permanently glued there. But I noticed she was constantly throwing Mike flashed grins. That's when I understood she was using me to make Mike jealous. That relieved me; I was just a tool to make Mike envious. And for some reason it was working. Newton refused to speak to me or even acknowledge my existence.

Despite the awkwardness of Jessica and Mike's company, I found this class enjoyable. The teacher was nice and the class was a bit of a challenge. I pulled out my schedule again. Next was Geography, building 8. At least it's close by. Ben looked over my classes, informing me he had both Geography and Biology me, as did Angela.

The next few periods were boring. Each teacher made me stand up in front of the class and introduce myself. I was starting to recognize some of the faces. Sadly, Alice wasn't in anymore of my classes. Even sadder, Lauren was in both Geography and Musical Instruction that followed the next period. While not as clingy as Jessica, she was just as annoying and even more vain. I only focused on the ceiling and pretended to be interested in some scandal involving a girl named Samantha and this guy Lee. Lauren also seemed resilient. Surely she must have seen I wasn't listening, but that didn't stop her at all. I was actually excited when the bell rang announcing it was time for Calculus.

Most of the students in this class were seniors. This was the one class I had absolutely insisted on. There was no way I going to go to Trigonometry again. I took the empty seat beside a pale blond guy in the back row once my slip was signed. He glared at me from the corner of his eye. Then suddenly, his eyes shifted to a darker color. I blinked a few times. Must have been a trick of the light. But I still dragged my chair as far away from him as possible. Most of the class passed like that: he glared at me from slit like eyes while I stared at the board, taking notes.

Once class ended, he shot out of the room faster then I would have thought probable. I shook my head. I had to be out of it. I went to my locker, shoving my books in. Then I headed to the lunch building. Thanks to my lack of breakfast, I was starved.

I had barely taken a step in when Alice grabbed my arm, yanking me into the lunch line. I laughed once I gained back use of my legs. "Wow, you must be hungry."

She grinned up at me. "Not really. But you are, right?"

"Uh, yes. I am." I raised an eyebrow at her. But she changed the subject.

"So how was French?" She asked innocently, making me shove her lightly.

Once we had gathered some food, she pulled me to a table in the back of the cafeteria. A breathtaking blond girl was already sitting there. It was obvious that she didn't look a think like Alice, but something about her face seemed familiar. Perhaps it was just those same honey colored eyes. But she had the same pale face and striking features.

Alice pulled me into the chair beside her, across from the blond. "Edward Masen, this is one of my sisters, Rosalie Hale." Rosalie turned her head to look at me, apparently apprising me. She sniffed lightly.

Alice's eyes narrowed, but she turned to me, ignoring her sister. "And yeah I know, we look nothing alike. Dr. Cullen and his wife adopted us all. None of us are related, so it's sort of like living with a bunch of roommates. But Rose here has a twin brother who also lives with us, Jasper Hale." She smiled lightly. "He's kind of my boyfriend."

I nodded. I had figured she had a boyfriend. A girl that stunning had to be hooked up. "But… isn't he your brother, too?" I asked, a bit confused. She's dating her brother?

She laughed while Rosalie played with her hair. "We aren't actually related. Rosalie and Jasper are Mrs. Cullen's niece and nephew. Me, Emmett, and Bella are just extras, if you will. They adopted us a few years ago, so we like to think of ourselves like a family." She spit her tongue out at Rosalie. "Sometimes we even fight like siblings."

Rosalie chuckled. "Aren't you just adorable, little sister?" Her voice was beautiful like Alice's but tainted with her mocking tone. She flipped her hair. "Do the others know your new friend is joining us?" She asked quietly.

Alice reached over to pinch Rosalie's cheek. Her sister slapped the hand away immediately. "Don't worry Rosie. Everything will be fine. I'm sure of it." She looked up at me then turned her vision towards the lunch line. "Oh, here comes Jasper and Emmett." I looked up.

One of them was huge. He had dark brown hair and those same eyes. However, his seemed a bit darker. He was tall, taller then me by a good two inches at least. He looked at me questioningly, but then turned to Rosalie.

"Don't look now, but things are going to get mushy over there." Alice murmured as the big guy ducked into his seat next to Rosalie. Before I could ask what she meant by 'mushy', Rosalie and the guy started to kiss. No, make out. It was almost aggressive, in a way. Did they not realize this was in full view of the whole lunchroom? Alice coughed lowly, trying to hide her grin. It seemed this guy, he had to be Emmett, was also together with his sister. Well, adoptive sister.

Then I turned back to face the other guy. Jasper Hale: Rosalie's twin brother, Alice's boyfriend. And my table partner in Calculus. His dark eyes glared at me fiercely.

"What is this guy doing here, Alice?" His voice was similar to the other two's, but deeper. And angry. Very angry.

For some reason, an unknown fury seemed to be invading me. Who the heck was this guy to be pissed off with me when I didn't do anything to him? I wasn't in the mood to take his shit. I was just about to stand up and tell him so when Alice tightly grabbed my arm.

"Jazz, calm down. You should know better then to get so angry." She scolded. Jasper closed his eyes, breathing in and out deeply. "This is Edward Masen. He's new here." She softly informed him. Alice beamed up at Jasper as he opened his eyes. He walked around me without a word, taking the seat on Alice's other side. Instantly, my rage faded. That was strange. What was I so angry about? For some reason, I couldn't remember.

Emmett had finally released Rosalie. He was watching me carefully. "So the name's Edward, huh?" His eyes flicked from me to his sister.

"Yes." I smiled. "I'm in Alice's English class. We spent the better part of the period discussing the flaws in the education system." Alice chuckled.

Jasper wrapped his hand in Alice's. She smiled, but then frowned suddenly. Her wide eyes scanned the cafeteria. "Hey, where's Bella?"

Rosalie shrugged her shoulders. "Perhaps she's skipping?" The blond girl nuzzled her head against her boyfriend's neck. "Then again, she could just be cooling off in the M3. She's been acting quite oddly today. More agitated then usual."

Alice nodded solemnly. "Yeah, I've noticed too. But I have a good feeling about what it is…" Her eyes once again jumped up to me. But they dashed back to her food so suddenly; I thought I must have imagined it.

Emmett seemed worried for a second. "I'm sure it's nothing. If it was bad, she would have came to us. Anyway, how you holding up? Forks isn't the most interesting place in the world." He grinned.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, it's been better then expected. The classes aren't too bad. So far only a few people have been obnoxious." Alice and I both turned our heads towards the table nearest the door. There sat Jessica and Lauren amidst a pack of their followers. The blond girl caught my eye and smiled widely. Jessica glared at her friend. I could see her mouthing off her friend. Lauren smugly replied something back and shook her hair around her. I glared at them openly before turning back to the Cullen/Hale family.

Alice tilted her hair back to stare at the roof. "Oh boy do you have your hands full with those two." She and her brother laughed.

"Don't I know it." I muttered darkly, chugging the remains of my soda. "Even worse, they are both in at least two of my classes so far."

Alice propped her head up on the table with her arm. "Anyone else in your classes that you know?"

I thought about it. "That Ben Cheney is in a few and Angela Webber was in French." I shrugged. "And Jasper is in my Calculus class."

Alice's eyes narrowed. "He is?"

"Yes. We sit at the same desk."

She glared at her boyfriend in response. "Huh." Jasper just turned his head away and acted as if he had lost interest in the conversation. Great, another Mike. So far I could mark down two people who already didn't like me. And of course, they didn't like me because of their girlfriends. So predictable.

I shifted my attention around the cafeteria. Most people were deep in talk. Every once and a while I would catch them looking in our direction. I should have figured I was still the hot gossip. I vaguely wondered how long it would take for them to get bored of talking about me. But then something else caught my attention. No, someone else.

An enchanting young woman with long, billowing brown hair that drifted behind her was walking towards our table. She had a very graceful way of walking. It was almost as if she was floating. She was extremely pale, as if she had not just never seen sunlight, but had been born of moonlight instead. She was a small girl, but taller then Alice and Jessica. She wore a simple pair of faded jeans and a light pink polo shirt. The dull clothes were an insult to her perfect figure. But I took in the details of her outfit only briefly. Because the moment I looked at her, I was drawn into her eyes. They were more or less the same color as the others: a goldenrod shade. But hers were more vivid, deeper. The topaz color on the surface merely was a tool to look into her soul. I had the feeling that if I was to stare into the endless pool of butterscotch, I could fall in and never come out. Yet I was okay with this, if only to have the chance to gaze into her beautiful face just once.

Only then did I realize that I was gawking at this girl. And right in front of her family. She paused upon seeing me, but didn't say a word to me. "Alice." God, was it even possible for a voice to sound so heavenly? I mentally made a note to try to see if there was a key on the piano that could sound so breathtaking.

"Alice," the angel repeated. "I'm not in the mood to be here today. I'm actually feeling a bit ill." She smiled slightly. It was more then enough to make my heart stop. "But thanks to Banner, I have a test in Biology next period, so I'm sticking around. Sorry to have worried you." She kissed Alice on the cheek and nodded at Jasper. His face softened a bit.

The small girl positively beamed at her sister. "It's okay Bella. I'm just glad to see you didn't take Rosalie's car and leave us all here." She waved. "Now, take care of yourself." The brunette rolled her eyes but kept her smile. Then she turned on her heel and floated out of the lunchroom. I couldn't help but to stare after her.

"She's very pretty isn't she?" Alice was staring at me. Wow, had my staring really been so noticeable? I flushed slightly and glared across the room. But Alice laughed. I could almost hear the wheels turning in her head, trying to find a way to hook me up with her sister. And although I'd rather eat my own kidney then admit it, I was secretly hoping one of her schemes would work.

The lunch bell rang loudly. Everyone stood up from there seats to head to 6th period. I pulled out my schedulable from my pocket to look at it again. Butterflies rammed against the insides on my body. I had to fight down my emotions furiously before Alice could see my smile. 6th period-- Building 2, Mr. Banner. Biology.