LIMELIGHT

YSABELLA, CHIEF CHUCKIE SWINE'S DAUGHTER, WAS THE NEW MEAT IN TOWN. The new girl in school. And her first day at Knives could have never been more awkward. Everybody was looking at her as she squeezed herself down the halls looking for her room. Her teacher always asked her to come in front of the class and introduced herself, as if nobody else still knew her, by name, at least. By lunchtime, everyone's eyes were already glued to her like she was some kind of a celebrity. She was far from being one, though. That honor belonged to someone else.

"Annoying, right?" a small female voice jolted her from her seat.

"Huh?" muttered Ysabella Swine, surprised by the girl who suddenly slid into a seat right across her.

"Don't worry. They'll get sick of it." The girl said, after a meaningful sigh, almost dropping her tray of pineapple juice and broccoli.

Ysabella put down her burger and took a large gulp of her soda.

"Knives is such a small town, isn't it?" said the girl as she flipped her long straight hair that was seemed to be painfully salon-stretched. Ysabella could tell it was a stubborn curly mane before, it reminded her of that Journey's new frontman's hairdo.

"Everybody is all classmates since kindergarten," the girl went on. "Pretty much, everybody knows everybody else."

"I see", replied Ysabella, feeling a little queasy.

"It doesn't happen everyday, you know—a new face arrives. The last time somebody moved in here…" The girl's voice suddenly trailed off, eyes all dreamy and a smile curving her face like the way one does when recalling something real nice. Then, all of a sudden, she burst into a giggle. "Gosh, it was crazy! Totally! Chaotic!" she exclaimed ecstatically.

Ysabella gazed at the girl in disbelief. Right then, the girl stared back at her and her face pulled back right into a serious mode, suddenly remembering she was talking to the new girl. "So, what do you think about Knives, Ysabella?"

"Bella, just Bella. For short."

The girl shrugged, her hair swaying stiffly. Bella could bet such hair would move funny in a head-banging concert.

"Whatever," the girl snapped, and then drew in a fake smile.

Suddenly, Bella (as she preferred to be called) was afraid if the girl had just knew she had been thinking on her hair, but was immediately relieved when the girl said, "So, Bella, is this place a bit boring to you, huh? A city girl like you to be stuck in here—I mean—what were you thinking?"

"It's kinda complicated. Family matters."

"Yeah, right. Well, just like they say, you don't know what you got 'till it's gone."

"You talking about Foenix* losing me? Or, you meant the other way around?"

The girl merely shrugged her shoulders as she popped a small broccoli into her mouth, her hair bouncing forcibly with her gait.

Of course Bella knew the answer to her own question. She was not that of a dimwit. She was just actually trying to be clever. But, she never should have asked. It just all backfired at her. And now, she was the one looking stupid in front of the girl. Whoever she is.

Bella was suddenly pissed. The girl was getting on her nerves. And that hair! She could have easily pulled them out from the girl's head. She wanted to, but of course, she knew any better than to lose herself. She picked up her half-eaten burger and began gnawing it, trying to annoy the girl. The girl stared at her in near disgust, but Bella never returned her any icy get-back stare. Being too much of a goody two shoes (well, she's supposed to be, being the lead character and all), she looked over at the girl's shoulder's instead. And there, he saw him.

She could not just miss him. No one could. He's like a toy misplaced in a bookshelf. No matter how good books there are, any normal kid would always pick on the sole toy. But the metaphor could be wrong, though. Not that he's really like a toy and that the school is like a bookshelf and everyone else are like books and that Bella is the kid. Maybe, it could be, though. Well, whatever. That's beside the point.

So, anyway, there he was, wearing a grey designer hoodie. His long dark hair covered almost his entire beautiful face. He was beautiful alright. Perfect bone structure, angular, defined face unique to a man, or to any human for that matter. He could be a girl and passed just as beautiful. And he was white as a chalk.

The guy's long pale finger toyed on the blood-red apple. His tray of vegetables, untouched. Cafeteria food must really be that bad. Bella readily dropped her burger. She figured she must hate cafeteria food, too. It was then that Bella realized she was not the only one staring at the guy. So did the entire student body.

At first, Bella thought it was just her. People were just so interested in her that they would even follow her gaze no matter where or to whom would it landed, as if they were all interested in anything that would caught her attention. She should have not flattered herself that much. Then, she realized she was wrong. How stupid could she get? Of course, it wasn't because of her. Matter of fact, she had nothing to do with it. People are just simply drawn to the guy. There was something in the way he moved and not moved that suited him. The way he carried his clothes. He could probably wear a garbage bag and still looked good in it.

He was so cool without trying, without even knowing it. Or so it seemed. Though all eyes were on him like paparazzi's lenses (a couple of students even managed to take a picture of him using their camera phones), it was like he did not care at all. Not like he was used to it. Not like he was enjoying it—the guy never smiled. Maybe, he was just too lazy to mind.

And what's more weird? He was all alone. All kept to himself.

So people kept on staring in admiration. In jealousy. Some even stared like he was the lunch, gaping at the sight of him. This dude can stop traffic (and may cause accident) and can get away with it.

Now, so much for a page and a half description of this guy. Whew! Back to Bella. And to the girl sitting at her table.

"Found something interesting?" the girl whose brows rose, disrupted Bella's sight-seeing. She turned around to follow Bella's gaze then scoffed as she faced Bella. "Drop it, Bella. He's way out of your league."

"W-what? W-who?" Bella gasped, only to have realized she had long been holding her breath.

The girl sighed as if she was going to say something insignificant. And maybe even disgusting. "His name is Eduard Coolen" the girl started, with voice cautious, afraid the guy might hear her. "He always has that effect on everyone. Apparently, he's the only cool thing in Knives aside from its weather. He's a pretty thing alright, but such a snob. Even to teachers. Doesn't talk much and doesn't like hanging around with other kids. Cocky. Loner. Freak. So unlike, his brother, Dr. Carlyle." A smile suddenly wiped off the dreary look on the girl's face. "The Coolens**," she whispered in her dreamy voice. "They make hospital, and yeah, school, somewhat bearable."

As if a timer to the girl's chatter, the school bell rang. Like everybody else, the two girls gathered themselves up to head back to their classes.

"Knives isn't that bad, really," said the girl smugly as she got up from her seat.

But Bella didn't hear her. She was looking for the mysterious Eduard Coolen with the long rocker slash skater slash surfer slash mop slash Slash hair. But she could not find him. Slightly disappointed, she turned to the girl and asked the question she should have asked first. "So, what did you say your name was?"

"Jean***, just Jean. That short."

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*my own a fictional place. hehhe

**yup. The Coolens claimed to be brothers. It's more age appropriate. Partners in Crime. Lestat and Louis? hehehe

***Jean= Jessica and Angela combined literally. Meaner than Jessica was.