Author's Note: Here is the second chapter. I want you to know that my characters are wonderfully flawed – this is very obvious in the beginning of this chapter. I realized, while editing, that Molly's narration sounds very different for a Twilight fic – her thoughts will reflect her two separate ages, physical and actual. This chapter is my longest, and maybe one of the most important.
I forgot last chapter to give her credit – lots and lots of thanks to leiahlaloa, who worked as my editor for this story.
Chapter Two:
New Kids
Alice always says that a light skirt is perfect for the first day of school, and so the red tints in the pattern on the flowing mauve fabric contrasted brilliantly with my red tank top. A vintage denim jacket was a must – both classy and casual; I could blend into the crowd at will, but anyone who took the time to notice me would be unable to disregard my natural beauty.
Lisa could never understand the importance of clothing. Though her strength was her analytical mind – able to process numbers and science and other infinitesimally small things – the other side of it was her complete disregard for style. She lucked out, always playing the part of a college student, which went well with her reluctantly-designer jeans and plain colored shirts. Bella, too, thought it ridiculous to waste the Cullens' money on such trivialities as clothes – she climbed out of Josh's simple and functional car wearing a pair of jeans that she ripped while hunting, old tennis shoes, an overly-large jacket boasting Columbia University's name, with her beautiful brunette hair in a ponytail. I shook my head in despair, though at hearing my thoughts Edward was quick to remind me that the fewer men staring at his wife, the better.
Josh and Edward had a similar sense of style – "designer causal," as Alice called it. Lisa and Bella mocked them – "Abercrombie models," referring to the popular clothing store of the late 20th and early 21st century, known for hiring employees that looked like models. Abercrombie and Fitch bankrupted in 2067, along with many of its other major competitors, when Modular came on the scene; the department store dedicated solely to teens was known to carry every style, size, and price. I didn't think my sister's disdain totally fair – vampires can't help looking amazing all the time. Why hide it? Lisa would retort that I was stuck at sixteen and thus naturally and eternally superficial. I would, in return, take no offense – I was older than her by one hundred and sixteen years anyway.
Edward Cullen dressed in nice, clean-cut items – we were both from a period in time where respectability was paramount. However, he had probably pulled on his jeans at the last minute, though they sat on his hips like a photographer had carefully arranged them. The muscles underneath his fitted black t-shirt and tan leather jacket would intimidate even the largest of football players, and leave all the girls swooning. Bella said she didn't mind too much, since she wasn't the one that had to hear their thoughts.
Josh, my easy mannered older brother, made use of the knowledge that he would look tantalizing in anything he wore, no matter how ridiculous – Lisa frequently called him a "goofball." He dressed in brown board shorts and flip-flops, a nod to the ending summer, despite the ocean being more than a thousand miles away. His matching maroon polo shirt, though looser than his best friend's, left little more to the imagination. He hadn't taken the time to brush his messy dark curly locks, yet they sat in perfect disarray. I loved my brother and his odd sense of humor, but our relationship was strained; he was as loyal to his God as I was to my art. I knew that he would do anything for me, but sometimes his caution and protection felt like a snub from his holier-than-thou side, trying to keep me from treacherous sin.
I slid from the backseat of the dark blue vehicle and surveyed the filling parking lot. Amongst the richer citizens of the town, our car was nothing special – it managed to remain more inconspicuous than we ourselves did. Though many a cheerleader or jock dressed in stylish designer names, we always managed to outdo their efforts, forever looking absolutely stunning. The current style emphasized the motto of the digital age, "less is more." Simple colors and fewer items made up our outfits – accessories were out. However, teenagers would always be insecure, hiding their blemishes behind make up or the latest bag, shoes or car.
I claimed that I understood teenagers the best. I became a vampire on the night of my sixteenth birthday, nearly two hundred years before. At five-foot-seven-inches, I passed for anything between fourteen and nineteen; I didn't complain much about constantly reliving high school – I was never going to be older than a teenager, but I understood them better than they themselves did. I spent the second half of my first hundred years learning to abstain from human blood with a vegetarian coven in Denali. I was successful enough to have found a few shallow human acquaintanceships in some of the students in my art class, the class I was most passionate about – a result of the enhancement of my creativity when I became a vampire. These acquaintances knew better than to ask me personal questions, but we could talk casually about the exploits of Sydney Ritz or the newest on-screen hottie, Donnie Fowler. About to enter yet another sophomore year, the "cooler" kids in my school were still trying their level best to find some dirt on Molly Johnson's pristine image – I thought that our guests might stir up some scintillating controversy.
There were more than a few stares coming from the bewildered freshmen, and some rather curious looks from the upperclassmen towards Edward and Bella. The rumors of the new arrivals had spread quickly through the small town, always so eager for new gossip. The beautiful "newbies" were a source of entertainment to these people – rumors of their wealth and mentions of plastic surgery abounded; though cosmetic surgery had become common place in the past century, the topic was still taboo. I noticed that more than a few discouraged girls turned away when Edward took Bella's hand in his.
I smiled and nodded in acknowledgement to a few members of the art department as we waited in the lines for this year's class schedules. Josh and I had perfected lunch times by choosing isolating talents – instead of sitting alone and conspicuous in the cafeteria, we hid inside classrooms, working "intensely" on respective projects – no one noticed that we failed to eat anything because no one struck up a conversation. I acted as lunchtime teacher's assistant for the art department; the creative genius, I was always drawing or painting, and frequently sewing or tailoring my own outfits. Josh edited the school newspaper, spending hours in the library or on a computer. Bella would join Josh on the newspaper staff this year, and Edward would sit in the library at lunch time, "studying," in order to free his afternoons to work at Modular with Josh.
I was now a sophomore; young enough to still be stuck in P.E., but old enough to start taking A.P. classes. I groaned inwardly at my first class; science bored me to no end, and I would start every day with Chemistry.
Bella poked her husband and laughed at some inside joke, "Look! I have biology right after lunch!" Though she was physically older than her mate, she posed as a junior to have separate classes from him - to keep suspicious eyes from paying too much attention to their all-too-evidently-close relationship.
As I wandered the halls, I noticed that another new kid had entered the building. He must have been a late comer – new residents were big news in the small town. He was slight, but good-looking for a human; short, spiked brown hair, defined face, and kindly blue eyes. He wore jeans, real checkered Vans – hard to find nowadays - and a black vintage concert tee; he had the look of a punk, but was probably a true fan of good music. He was welcomed by Tony Trapp, the youngest member of the varsity football team, and generally acknowledged school hunk – aside from the vampires present. Tony welcomed him, and introduced the boy to the gaggle of giggling girls behind him – referring to the boy as, "Nathan, my cousin."
Behind Nathan stood a shorter girl with similar brown hair and soft oceanic eyes, evidently his twin sister, "Natasha". She dressed simply in a plain denim skirt and a navy-blue shirt – simple and cute, because she was unsure of her status in this new school. My attention caught by the fresh faces, I opened my locker, successfully moving closer to catch the conversation. A few times last year, Tony and his team had gone out of their way to try and make my life miserable; they couldn't understand why any pretty girl would so flatly reject their advances. Only a firm understanding of the inner workings of the teenage mind, along with the knowledge that I could kill all of them in an instant, kept me smiling. I hoped that the cute boy wouldn't fall in with this bad crowd. He looked too good for them.
I jumped nearly a mile in the air when Josh interrupted my eavesdropping. "Are you no longer the prettiest girl in school, Molly?" He teased, ruffling my bouncy dark curls, adding too low to be heard without supernatural hearing, "and beaten by a human."
"Be nice," Edward pretended to come to my rescue, "she's more interested in the little boy."
"Edward!" Bella chided him, actually coming to my aid. "It's not nice to listen to peoples thoughts."
"I'm just speaking from experience," he shook his head for emphasis, "don't get mixed up with humans Molly. They're bad for your health."
Bella continued reprimanding him as I hugged my brother goodbye and escaped to the science wing. One of the first to the class, I found my seat in the middle of the room, flipping through the text I had picked up – old and outdated, I'd used it more than once before in other schools. The American school system found that students responded better to good old paper-and-ink books, though we were required to type our work on our handhelds. Bored, I plugged the device into the desk's power port and listened to the gossiping girls sitting down behind me.
"Oh, my gosh," a tall blonde named Morgan began, "two hot new guys in one day."
"I still maintain that Joshua Johnson is the best looking guy in school." Her companion, Athena, pronounced.
"But he doesn't date. Nathan is hot, new, and single, and - look! He's in this class." Morgan lowered her voice some.
"Did you see that other guy - with the amazing hair? He looks pretty much taken."
"Molly?" I sat upright when Morgan leaned forward from her seat behind me. I noticed a quick wave of her scent – slightly reminiscent of daisies – before focusing on her words.
"Who was that amazing guy with your brother this morning? Does he have a girlfriend?"
I gritted my teeth before smiling, pretending to be surprised that she had spoken to me. It was hard to successfully paint myself as too shy instead of too proud, to safely keep away from too much human contact. The town assumed that we kept to ourselves because we were still in mourning, traumatized by the tragedy that had befallen our family.
"That's Edward Cullen; his adoptive father was good friends with our dad." I began to explain. "His girlfriend's the brunette you might have seen him walking with, Bella Swan – a foster child of the Cullen's."
After the shock of the almost-incestual relationship wore off, Morgan thanked me, no doubt for the good gossip. I noticed the new boy sitting next to me – his last name was Lancaster. I smiled in his direction, before mentally critiquing the wardrobes of my classmates, an Alice-tried-and-tested tactic to keep sane during monotonous classes.
After the standard "download the class syllabus and have your parents sign it" speech, we were left to our own devices for the remaining few minutes. I pulled my old-fashioned sketchbook and pencils from my paint-splotched shoulder bag, and settled in to finish a rendition of Josh's face on his hundredth birthday, copied from a photograph.
"Boyfriend?" Asked a tenor voice from my left. I turned to see sea-blue eyes and struggled not to get lost in them. The overwhelming smell of "manly deodorant" shook me back to my senses.
"Brother," I replied lightly. I decided that the new kid deserved some courtesy – he didn't yet know that his cousin detested shy little Molly Johnson.
"It's very good – it almost looks real." He commented. I thanked him and turned back to my pencil, before being bombarded by another question.
"Do you know that you're the prettiest girl I've ever seen?"
I was taken aback by his forwardness for a moment, before replying, somewhat curtly, "Thank you."
Thankfully, the bell rang before Nathan could speak more, and I hurried from the room to my next class – English, a subject that changed with time, providing both new literature and new ideas. I stared at my desk as students filed into the classroom. Why would a human boy speak to me?
OOOOOOOOO
"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark."
- Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 4, Line 100.
Author's Note: I enjoy getting feedback! I have 31 author alerts, and I get new story alerts frequently – (guilt-trip moment) a comment from all of you would be nice! After all, everyone has an opinion. I introduced a main character in this chapter – she's going to be alternating narration with Josh. Do you like her? Does she have you theorizing as to what's going to happen?
