A/N: So, here's the intro to "the ladies."
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Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of its characters.
Chapter 2
The Ladies
EmPOV
It was a bright Thursday afternoon and after being stuck in this prison called Volturi for about two weeks, I decided to take a jog in the woods nearby. Anything to get out of this shit-hole.
Twenty minutes into my workout, I could see a group of red brick buildings looming in the distance. I recognized them as part of Queen's College, a women-only undergraduate school. I hadn't seen any specimen of the human female population in a while, so I decided to see if I could check out some chicks.
Outside in a field, in front of a moss-covered brick building, I spotted a group of women in their late teens and early twenties. They were standing in straight lines in front of a middle-aged woman who was wearing a white robe and a black belt wrapped around heir waist. They were all wearing similar white robes and I realized that they were all part of a karate class.
"So, is anyone willing to demonstrate to their peers what I just showed to the class?" The karate instructor called out.
A tall, blond-haired girl walked up to the front and turned to face the entire class. My jaw dropped at the sight of her. She looked like she came straight out of a Barbie dollhouse, her thick golden hair cascading down to her waist as she took it out of her hair tie. She had a perfect figure, stunning features and beautiful blue eyes.
I gawked at her until class was dismissed and everyone started walking in different directions. I sauntered after her and before I opened my mouth she turned around.
"Hello," I said with as much courage as I could muster.
She studied me from head to toe with a skeptical expression.
"I j-just saw y-you guys do-doing karate, and I was wondering if I c-could get myself acquainted with you," I stammered.
"Are you from Volturi?" She asked, really irritated.
"Yes, I am actually. That's why I came up here, to get to know – you now – my neighbors," I replied, smiling to hide my nervousness.
"Look, I don't know why you're here. But if any of the faculty gets to know that you were here checking out girls, then you'll be in a lot of trouble. It will go straight to Aro," she said angrily.
"I –I wasn't checking out the girls –"
"Yes you were! Don't lie to me," she said as she glared.
"Well, can I at least get your name, please?"
"No!" She shouted as she walked away.
"Please, please, please," I pleaded as I followed her.
She didn't answer and instead kept walking away. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a redhead appeared and called out, "Rosalie! Rosalie Hale! Get here fast, I need to show you anything."
The blonde looked towards the redhead's direction and then back at me.
"Rosalie," I said, smirking.
She just glared at me and ran off to where the redhead was.
JPOV
As soon as my last class of the day finished, I turned my phone on to find that I had three missed calls. I smiled when I saw who the caller was and speed-dialled the first number on my priority list.
"Jazzzzzz!!!!" she squealed when she picked up on the third ring.
"Hey Ali, what's up?" I asked my best friend, chuckling.
"I'm doing great! Oh my god, Jazz I need to tell you something. You're not gonna believe this."
"What? You went shopping this afternoon?"
"That I did," I could imagine her rolling her eyes as she said it. "But I have some news for you,"
"Wait, Ali, you're not pregnant are you?" I teased her.
"Yeah, yeah whatever," she responded, and I knew she was rolling her eyes again. "Jazz, my dad announced that we are moving to Forks!"
"Oh-kay," I said, not understanding the significance of her statement.
"Idiot! Forks is right next to Volturi College. Do you know what this means?" she squealed.
"Oh my gosh! Seriously?" Did I hear her right?
"Yes, yes, yes!!!!" She exclaimed. "Dad just got transferred to Forks by the company for five years. And since I'm taking a year off, I'm staying with him."
"Wow," was all I could come up with at that moment.
"Jazz, we definitely have to hang out. Wait, I'm not asking you to. We are hanging out. I am going to come over to your dorm every single day –"
"Ali," I sighed. "This is an all-guys campus and girls aren't allowed here."
"What?" She asked, and I could hear in her tone that she thought I was just messing around.
"Yes, Ali. We have all sorts of ridiculous rules here."
"Hah. Whatever. I am going to sneak in every night and no one's gonna know about it."
"Aro knows everything, Ali. Nothing escapes his notice and he has hidden cameras and loyal employees all over this place."
"Well, that sucks. But I do hope that you can get out and meet me then. Because otherwise, I am not moving with my dad."
"Of course I will do that. Everyday."
"Ok, I gotta go now. But I'll talk to you soon. Love ya, Jazz."
"Love you too, Ali. Take care."
By the end of our conversation I was in my room sitting on my bed across from Edward. I caught him smirking at me.
"What are you smiling at?"
"You looked really happy when you were on that phone. I could hear a girl's voice on the other end," he replied, still smirking.
"Ok. So? I was talking to my best friend, Alice. She and I have been neighbors since we were in preschool. She just told me that she's moving to a place nearby and I was obviously happy hearing it."
"Hmm. You really like her, don't you?" Edward asked as he looked at me directly.
Was it that obvious? Of course I liked at her. A lot. In fact, I loved her. Much more than a friend. But Alice didn't know it, and she only thought of me as her best friend.
"Dude, you're blushing," Edward said, chuckling.
"No, I am not!" I protested, my face heating up as I quickly hid it from his sight. Alice Brandon and I practically grew up together; we lived on the same street ever since we were three and my mom, Susan Whitlock, and her mother, Sarah Brandon, had become best friends by the time we were five.
I didn't know how, and couldn't remember when I had started loving her. Maybe it had started during a hot and humid August afternoon when she started jumping and dancing in the heavy rain right after the end of our freshman year in high school. Maybe it had started the time when she had wrapped her treasured Burberry scarf around my bleeding knee due to the lack of a bandage. Perhaps it had begun right after my sixteenth birthday when she had nursed me after I had a little too much to drink. Or perhaps it had begun during the week after her cat, Pumpkin, had died when she had stayed in my room since she couldn't bear to stay in her house and be reminded of his absence.
I didn't know when it had all begun, but after it had, it just kept on growing and growing, and now I wasn't sure that it would ever stop.
EPOV
To say that I was disappointed when Ms. Swan had called me last Wednesday to postpone my interview date by a week was an understatement. I wanted to be a piano teacher really badly, and I also desperately wished to spend some time out of this claustrophobic campus.
So when I finally pulled up at the driveway of the two-storey white building, I couldn't help but smile. I was also quite nervous, frantically hoping that I would get the job.
The door was answered by an old, tan-skinned man in a wheelchair.
"Hello, I am Edward Masen. I came here to see Ms. Swan."
"Oh, yes, yes. Please come in," he said as he led me to a room filled with mahogany furniture and grey couches.
I sat on one of the chairs while he left to let Ms. Swan know of my arrival. I looked around me to see several paintings pinned to the grayish-white walls and a mahogany showcase decorated with various showpieces and framed pictures. On the small, round table right next to where I was sitting was a photo of a young boy with big brown eyes, tanned skin and dark black curls.
"Hello, you must be Mr. Masen," I heard a familiar female voice call out to me. I turned around to see a brown-haired woman standing a few feet away.
"I am Bella Swan, the woman who spoke to you on the phone about hiring a piano teacher for my son," she said as she extended her hand towards me.
Hearing this, I was shocked and dumbfounded. I expected her to be the older sister of the four-year-old boy; she looked barely over eighteen or nineteen. I had imagined Bella Swan to be somewhere in her mid- or late twenties.
"Oh, hello," I said, shaking her hand. I was pretty sure that the shock showed clearly in my voice.
"My son, Nick, will be here in a couple of minutes. His dad went to pick him up at the bus stop," she stated as we sat down together on the couch.
I nodded. "Is that your son?" I asked as I pointed to the photograph of the curly-haired boy.
"Yes, that is Nick, Mr. Masen."
"Please call me Edward, Ms. Swan."
"Please call me Bella, Edward," she said, laughing.
Bella Swan. Beautiful Swan. A very apt name for her.
"So, let's get down to business, Edward," Bella said in a professional tone. "Nick just turned four last summer, and he has never learned how to play the piano. Are you sure you can handle a child who's a beginner?"
"I have been teaching kids how to play since my freshman year in high school. It will be no challenge at all."
"Hmm. How often do you think you can come?"
"Let's see," I paused to think for a few moments. "I can do Fridays. Will every Friday work for you?"
"Fridays? Sure. I think 5 pm would work; it's right after Nick's afternoon nap. How does that sound?"
"Sounds great! 5 pm it is," I answered, smiling.
At that moment Bella turned away to look behind her. Then she stood up and walked towards the main door of the living room.
"Mommy! Mommy!" I heard as I saw a small boy with curly black hair run towards Bella who swept him up in her arms. A huge, muscular tan-skinned man walked in right after the boy.
"Edward, this is my son, Nick. Nick, this is Edward, your new piano teacher."
"Hi, Nick," I greeted the boy as I leaned towards him. He was staring at me intently; his big brown eyes were exact clones of his mother's.
"Say hi to him, honey," Bella addressed Nick.
"Hi," he barely muttered.
"And Edward, this is my fiancé, Jacob Black," she said as she motioned to the big, well-built man.
"Hello Jacob," I said as we shook hands.
"Please call me Jake," he said with a huge smile on his face.
"Honey, I have to go now. But I'll be back in a couple hours," Jake said as turned towards Bella.
"Okay," she said as he placed a chaste kiss on her lips and a peck on Nick's forehead.
"Bye Edward, it was nice meeting you," he said to me.
"You too," I said as he walked away.
After making small talk with Bella and settling on how I wanted to be paid, we said our goodbyes and I headed off to the dreadful place named Volturi.
I was already impatiently waiting for the following Friday.
A/N : So what do you think? Please review and let me know your thoughts!!!!!
