Chapter 2

Looking Through Me

Day two at Forks High School was both better and worse.

Better:

No rain yet; though the clouds looked like they could open up at any moment.

I knew what to expect of my day, for the most part. Mike sat next to me in English, and walked me to my next class - while Eric watched with a glare. Which was flattering.

People didn't stare as much as yesterday, which is always a bonus in my book.

I sat with a large group of people at lunch; including Mike, Eric, Jess and Angela along with several other people I could actually remember the names of. Alice even came over and sat with us for a bit. She brought over her boyfriend Jasper. He was quiet, but seemed to have this calming effect on the whole group; Eric and Angela had been arguing about stories to post in the school newspaper, and once he and Alice arrived, they seemed to lose steam.

Alice complimented my shirt again, it had another snarky line scrawled across it, but I had been careful to pick out something no one could take offense to.

Worse:

I was dead tired. I couldn't sleep with all the noise that wind and rain create, echoing through the house.

Mr. Varner called on me in Trig when I had purposefully not raised my hand.

I actually had to participate in gym today, too, which resulted in me smacking myself in the head several times, and getting my hand caught in the volleyball net.

And, as much as I hated to admit it, Day 2 was worse because Edward Cullen didn't show up.

Over all, I felt like I was starting to get a handle on everything, instead of drowning in the stress that Day 1 had smothered me in.

I had spent the entire morning dreading seeing Edward again in lunch. I was afraid of the glares I would get from him. I had worked myself up on the ride into school, ready to confront him and demand he explain what I had done to make him hate me so much. But as soon as I had pulled into the parking lot, I had lost all my confidence. Hell, the Cowardly Lion had nothing on me.

And, of course, as soon as I had walked into the cafeteria with Jess, my eyes had zeroed in on his families table. It was empty when we first got there, but before long, the Cullen's and Hale's had trays of food and were laughing it up with each other. Two Cullen's and two Hale's. My heart dropped into my stomach.

Mike had quickly blocked Jess and I from sitting at an empty table, and steered us towards the one he and a few others had already grabbed. Jess seemed really excited by this, and all of her friends joined us before long, and it was a big crowd of people standing or sitting around us. I couldn't keep up with the chatter going around the table as I waited for Edward to walk through the door, and that didn't go unnoticed.

"He's not here." Alice said, settling herself between Jess and I.

"Who?" I tried to play it off like I wasn't staring at the door, willing her brother to walk through it.

"Edward." She rolled her eyes. "He went to visit some relatives." She explained, but that didn't settle anything.

"Why didn't any of you go?" I gestured towards Emmett and Rosalie, still sitting at their normal table.

Alice shrugged. "Didn't feel like it."

She then turned her attention back to Jess, and I was left with my thoughts. When it was time to go, Mike walked with me to Biology. He was nice, but him tailing me everywhere was going to get old fast. As I stepped into the classroom, a breath I hadn't been aware I was holding came out with a whoosh. I made my way to my seat, with Mike faithfully following. He was going on and on about a trip to the beach that they had all been discussing at lunch. He stayed by my side until the bell rang, then pouted a little as he turned to go sit next to his table partner. I sighed, realizing that Mike might become an issue. I have very little experience in the realm of admiring boys, and in a small town like this, if I wasn't tactful it would be all over the place before I even finished telling him I wasn't interested.

Every time I caught myself glancing at Edward's empty seat, I told myself that I was glad he wasn't here. I didn't have to worry about being cramped up to half of the table, I could spread everything out in front of me. But, it still bugged me. I couldn't help but wonder if it was because of me. As egotistical as that seems, it kept crossing my mind. I had never had anyone take such an immediate and intense disliking to me like that before.

When the day was finally over, I made a b-line for my truck. A fierce blush - due to gym - was still staining my cheeks as I turned the key in the engine. As the cab warmed up, I searched my bag to be sure I had everything I needed. I had realized last night how little Charlie knew how to cook, and that the kitchen was seriously lacking even the basics. I had made a shopping list, and he had given me some money to go get food.

I pulled out into the line of cars leaving the school, and waited patiently. Then, I saw the beautiful Cullen's and Hale's walking towards their car. Emmett had his arm around Rosalie's shoulders and they were laughing loudly at something. Alice and Jasper's arms were laced together as Jasper scowled at them. I watched them stop at the shiny volvo, and rolled my eyes. Of course the beautiful people had the only nice car. Before climbing inside, Alice glanced over at me and waved with a smile. I pretended to not see her, and looked ahead of me at the line of cars.

The Thriftway was not far from school, and I was happy to be there. It made me think of back home in Phoenix, and the store was big enough that I didn't hear the soft pattering of rain outside.

"Hey Bella!" I heard a soprano voice call down the cereal isle.

Glancing towards it, I saw Alice gliding towards me. She didn't stop a few feet away like I had expected, instead she stepped right up to me, and wrapped her arms around me in a quick hug.

"Hey Alice. Whats up?" I asked, trying not to let it show how her hug had creeped me out a little.

"Jasper and I are just doing some shopping." She glanced over my shoulder with a smile.

"Hey Bella." The deeper voice made me jump a little and I turned so I could see both of them.

"Are you going to the beach this weekend?" Alice asked, swiftly latching on to Jasper.

I shrugged and leaned on my shopping cart. "No one has really asked me to go."

"Don't be silly! Of course you are invited!" The smaller girl giggled.

"So, you guys are going?" I asked, telling myself that I didn't care if they did or didn't.

Alice sighed, and shook her head. "Our parents are taking us camping." Then, she rolled her eyes, in an obvious they-are-so-lame sort of way.

I made a little more small talk, then used the feeding of Charlie as an excuse to run away.

When I finally got home, it was later than I had originally planned. I quickly breaded a couple pieces of chicken and while they fried, I pulled out a box of instant mashed potatoes. Charlie walked in the front door just as I was pulling the chicken out of the frying pan. I quickly set it along with the two other bowls - one of potatoes and the other full of canned green beans - on the table.

"Smells good." Charlie called down the short hallway.

"It's not much." I amended as his boots thudded off his feet and onto the little mat by the front door.

I heard him hanging up his unused gun belt, as I pulled a couple cups out of the cabinet. I filled them with iced tea as he made his way into the kitchen and to the small table. We ate in silence, which made me happy. He obviously wasn't a family-bonding-at-the-dinner-table person. After he had eaten all he could, he grunted and pushed himself back from the table a little.

He watched me as I stood to clear away the dirty dishes.

"So, how was school?" He asked as I put the dishes in the sink.

"Good." Was my only response.

"Make any friends yet?" His voice was uncertain, like he wasn't sure if two days was long enough to befriend anyone.

"Well, there are a couple people in several of my classes that are nice. I sit with them at lunch." I thought of Jess and Mike.

"Anyone I know?" This time, I was certain there was suspicion in his voice. I don't know why because I can't see how there could be a 'bad crowd' in a town like this.

"Probably." I joked, getting a chuckle out of him. "A girl named Jessica and a guy named Mike?" I gave him a look over my shoulder as I washed the plates.

"Mike Newton?" He asked, thinking it over. "He's a nice kid. His family owns the sporting goods store right outside of town. Good business when it warms up and people start going hiking and camping." He nodded.

I stifled a snort when he mentioned it warming up around here. He stood up and started towards the living room, then.

"Hey, uh, dad? Do you know the Cullen family?" I asked suddenly, not really thinking about it beforehand.

"Sure. Dr. Cullen is a great man. Family is real nice, too. Why?" He paused at the doorway, turned halfway towards me again.

"Just wondering. I see Alice at lunch a lot, and I ran into her and Jasper Hale at the store today." I shrugged, not wanting to mention Edward.

"Dr. Cullen is an amazing doctor. He could work for any hospital he wanted to, but he chose our little neck of the woods." He said, and the look on his face showed me just how much respect he had for this man. "I had my doubts when they moved here. So many adopted kids, I was sure they'd act out. But, really, I have barely heard a peep from them. A couple parties here and there, but those are full of kids whose families who have lived here for too many generations to count. And the Cullen family acts how a family should - they stick together. Which is a lot more than I could say for a lot of other families around here. They go camping often as they can, too. Just a good, close family." He huffed, coming to an end of his speech.

I just stared at Charlie, wondering what the hell that was. He had gotten quite worked up towards the end of his little speech - the longest I had ever heard him give - and I have no clue what started that. From what I could tell, everyone loves the Cullen's.

I didn't know what to say in response, so I just finished washing the dishes and setting them out to dry. I heard Charlie walk into the living room and settle himself on the couch. I made my way upstairs to start working on my homework, starting what would surely be a routine for Charlie and I.

That week flew by. There was nothing that really stood out for me. By Friday, I was able to remember the names of most of the kids in my classes. People learned to avoid passing me the ball in gym, and they blocked for me when the other team tried to take advantage of my weakness. I was more than happy to stand to the side, and let them play.

Every day, I would watch anxiously as the rest of the Cullen's made their ways to lunch. And every day, I would be able to relax once I was sure Edward was not with them. The beach trip that everyone had planned for this weekend was being postponed for a couple weeks, so they were still all discussing it. Mike had asked, overly hopeful, if I would be going with them. I agreed to go, simply to not make anyone upset. Beach are supposed to be dry and hot, and this one was sure to not be.

By Friday, I was totally comfortable walking into Biology. There was no one waiting to glare at me, so I could breathe easily. I still had the little voice in the back of my head that would shout that it was my fault Edward was not there, but I was able to ignore that for the most part.

My first weekend in Forks was pretty uneventful. There was only one thing that was kind of weird about it. Jess had bothered me at school to get a Facebook page, so I decided I might as well check it out. Well, not 2 minutes after I had finished signing up on the site, Alice Cullen had added me as a friend. I hadn't even gotten a chance to try to find anyone from school before she had found me.

I also made time that weekend to take a trip to the local library, but unfortunately it was so poorly stocked, I didn't even bother getting a card. I would most likely never come back here. I would have to travel outside of Forks to get any good reading material.

I was greeted by a lot of people on Monday morning in the parking lot, and while I didn't remember everyone's name, I still waved back. It was colder this morning than it had been since I arrived in Forks, but it was dry, so I was happy enough. Mike took his normal seat next to me in English, and everything was just as it had been last week.

I was quite comfortable in my new life. A lot more so than I expected to ever be.

When we left first period, the air was full of swirling bits of white. There were kids running up to their friends, excited about the first snow of the season. I suppressed a moan as the wind bit at the open skin of my face.

"It's snowing!" Mike said excitedly.

"Ew." Was all I could manage. This snow just ruined my good day.

Mike stared at me in shock. "You don't like snow?"

I shook my head, pulling my coat tighter around me.

"Snow means it is too cold to rain." D'uh. "And, besides, I thought snow was supposed to come down in flakes? This looks like pieces of cotton."

Mike let out a loud laugh. "Haven't you seen snow before?"

"On TV." I glared at him. "I grew up in Phoenix, remember? We don't get much snow there." I huffed and started towards my next class.

Mike called for me to wait up, then I heard a thud, and turned to see a bunch of snow sliding down his back. I looked further past him, and saw Eric hurrying away, in the wrong direction for his next class. I'd be willing to put money on it having been him who threw the snow at Mike. And Mike seemed to have the same idea, as he scooped up some snow and ran after Eric.

"Bye." I said to no one in particular since I was alone now.

The rest of the morning was full of excited chatter about the snow. I avoided the questions that came my way randomly about if I was happy about the snow. The gut reaction to the question was to scream that No! I did not like the snow! But, from the looks on everyone's faces, that answer would not go over well.

I let out a small shriek as I was glancing out the door of my Trig class, looking for anyone who may be tempted to throw a snowball my way. Alice Cullen had suddenly popped up right infront of me. Jasper Hale was not far behind her, as the two of them seemed to be almost glued at the hip.

"Hey Bella!" She smiled at me.

"Hi Alice." I said, feeling like more of a target was now aimed my way. Alice is easily one of the most popular people in school, She has plenty of friend who might find it funny to lop a dripping mush ball at her.

"What are you doing?" She asked, giggling at me as my eyes darted around the schoolyard.

"I don't want to get pelted with snowballs." I said, glancing back at her.

Jasper laughed a little, and wrapped an arm around Alice.

"They don't throw anything at us. Alice might kill them if they messed up her hair." He smirked down at the much smaller girl.

I sighed, and stepped out of the doorway.

"Come on, walk with us to lunch. You will be safe." Alice said, her arm snaking out to latch onto mine.

And so, the three of us made our way to the cafeteria. I am pretty sure we looked a bit weird, Alice latched onto my arm, and Jasper refusing to let go of her hand. But, they didn't seem to care, and no one else was staring or anything, so I didn't think about it.

As we walked, the arm of my jacket slid up a little bit, and Alice's hand touched my wrist. I jumped a bit, her hand was ice cold.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked, laughing a bit.

"Your hand is freezing, Alice! You should have gloves on!" I said, looking from her pale hand, then up to her smiling face.

The smile slipped a little bit, but she quickly put it back in place.

"We are almost at the cafeteria, my hands will warm up." She pulled her arm away from mine and glanced up at Jasper.

"Her hands are always cold." He shrugged. "She never pays attention to it."

I nodded and we continued on our way to lunch in silence. When we got inside, Alice and Jasper waved to me as they made their way to their normal table, and I wandered over to Jess and Mike. As I walked, I glanced over at their table. And I froze where I was. Their was a fifth person at the table. A bronze haired person.

"Bella?"

I heard someone call my name, but I couldn't take my eyes off him.

"Bella!" This time, I heard several people yell my name, followed by laughter. I snapped out of it, and looked at my laughing friends.

"What are you staring at?" Jess asked, craning her neck to look in the same direction. When she saw the Cullen's and Hale's, her mouth made an 'O' shape. She turned to another girl, named Lauren, and they both giggled.

I sat in my normal spot, and my eyes returned to the Cullen table. They were all laughing. Emmett and Edward had melted snow covering their hair. Rose and Alice leaned away as Emmett suddenly shook his head, and covered them with the moisture. Jasper was just laughing at them all. Rose glared at Emmett, as she pulled her shirt out to glare at the wet spots he had made on it. I sighed. They were enjoying the retched snow, too. Only, they looked like they were part of Currier and Ives painting; while everyone else was just blurred as if part of a paint by numbers done by a five year old.

I continued to stare at them, even after they had calmed down and were just holding a normal conversation. There was something very different about them, but I couldn't put my thumb on what exactly it was. I watched Edward the most, and compared them all to him. He was a little less pale, a bit flushed from a snow fight probably. But, then why wasn't Emmett? He had obviously been around Edward when he got covered in snow - it was too coincidental that two Cullen's got bombed with snow separately. The circle's under Edward's eyes were much less noticeable than his siblings, too. But there was something more...

I didn't realize that anyone had noticed my staring until Jess leaned closer to me. I diverted my stare when I realized she was trying to see what I was looking at. I failed at throwing her off the trail, though, because suddenly she sighed loudly.

"You're still staring at him?! Move on Bella, he is an ass." She turned back to Lauren then, and left me to be embarrassed.

I stared at the table for a moment, before I let my need to see his face again take over. I glanced up through my lashes, and saw him staring over at me, too. My eyes dropped again, and I picked at the table. I spent the rest of lunch thinking of ways to kill Jess for announcing to the whole school that I was staring at Edward Cullen. That was the only thing I could come up with for why he had looked at me, Jess had obviously said that I was staring too loudly.

"Whats he staring at?" I heard Lauren say from Jess' other side.

Then I felt Jess lean in towards me.

"Edward Cullen is staring at you." She giggled.

"Does he look angry?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

"No," She sounded confused. "Should he?"

"I don't think he likes me." I glanced over at her. She looked at him again, shrugged, and turned back to Lauren. I sighed and stood to heard to Biology early. I needed some time alone to get myself together. As I walked away, I heard Mike and Eric babbling about some epic battle of the blizzard after school. He was asking who wanted in, and I heard Jess agree enthusiastically, and I thanked everything there was that I had gotten away before they could pull me into it. I decided I would have to hide in the locker room after gym until it was all over.

When I got to the cafeteria doors, I smiled. The snow had been replaced by rain. I pulled my hood up, pleased I would be free to leave after gym.

I was still smiling as I walked into the Biology class. It was still empty, and I took my seat, trying not to stare at the empty seat that I knew would be filled before too long. Lunch was nearly over when I left, so it didn't take long before I heard the bell ring. I pulled out a notebook and began doodling as I waited for class to start.

I heard it very clearly when the chair next to me moved, but I kept my attention on the picture I was drawing. Suddenly, drawing a cactus was very difficult.

"Hello." Said a soft, musical voice.

Without thinking, I looked up at him, and dragged my pen right through my cactus. He was speaking to me. He was still sitting as far away from me as the desk allowed, but his chair was angled towards me, and he was most definitely looking at me. He was speaking to me. Even though his hair was soaked, and in total disarray, he looked like he had just stepped off the set of a commercial for hair gel. And while his face gave every appearance of being friendly, I could see the caution in his eyes. I wondered briefly what he was worried about, but then he started talking again.

"I am Edward Cullen. I didn't get a chance to introduce myself last week. You are Bella Swan, right?" He smiled at me.

My mind was reeling. He was being perfectly polite now, friendly even. Had I made up the whole thing last week? I realized my mouth was hanging open a little, and quickly shut it.

"How did you know my name?" I asked, coming up with nothing to say.

He laughed a little, and shook his head.

"I think everyone knows your name. Everyone in town has been waiting for Isabella Swan to arrive."

I grunted at that, having had a feeling that Charlie was telling everyone who would listen that I was coming.

"No, I meant, why did you call me Bella?" I continued lamely.

His brow furrowed, and I felt like smacking myself on the forehead.

"Alice said you went by Bella, so I assumed you did. Do you prefer Isabella?"

"No, I like Bella." I said quickly, forgetting that his sister would have told him I go by Bella. "I just think Charlie, my dad, calls me Isabella behind my back. That is how everyone seems to know me as." I sighed, resisting the urge to bang my head on the table.

He nodded, and dropped the subject. I stared back at my ruined cactus as the familiar flush spread across my cheeks.

Thankfully, Mr. Banner started class at that moment. We had busy work today, since he had some pop quiz's from his other classes to grade. He handed out a few worksheets for us all to work on. The class worked in silence for a few minutes, then people started chatting with their partners. I felt a little awkward because Edward and I stayed quiet, but tried to just concentrate on my work. Suddenly, someone in the room sneezed really loudly, and it made me jump. When that happened, my pencil shot out of my hand and rolled on the ground under the table. I tried to look around and see where it rolled to, but before I could spot it, I heard Edward's chair squeak as he moved to get it for me.

He held it up for me and, as I took it, our eyes met. All I could do was stare for a moment. There was something different about his eyes.

"Thanks." I mumbled. Then, suddenly it clicked, and I blurted. "Did you get contacts?"

He looked confused for a moment, then shook his head. "No?" It came out sounding a bit like a question.

"Oh. I just... I thought there was something different about your eyes." I tried to shrug it off.

He shrugged, and looked away - he seemed much more carefree than I looked, I'm sure.

But, the more I thought about, the more I realized there really was something different about his eyes. I vividly remembered the black of his eyes when he had glared at me last week. They had stood out when framed by his pale skin. Today, his eyes were completely different. They were a golden color, almost like that of hard caramel candy, but richer. I couldn't understand how that could be, unless he was lying to me for some reason. But, why would he lie about his eye color? I couldn't figure it out. Maybe Forks is making me crazy, literally.

I looked down, and saw his hands were clenched into tight fists again.

We both worked on our papers in silence again. After a while, I started doodling again.

"It's too bad about the snow, isn't it?" He asked. I started to get paranoid, like he was forcing himself to talk to me. It was as if he had heard Jess and I at lunch, and was trying to prove that he didn't hate me.

"Not really." I was honest. I figured one of us should be. The thoughts that he was lying about contacts were bothering me again. I couldn't even concentrate on my doodles.

"You don't like the cold." It wasn't a question.

"Or the wet." I snorted, then blushed.

"Forks must be a difficult place for you to live." He mused.

"You have no idea." I muttered darkly.

He stared at me for a minute, seeming to be fascinated by what I said. I couldn't imagine why. His face was so distracting, that I tried not to look at him more than absolutely necessary. It was like like looking up at a clear, starry night. Once you started looking at the stars, it was hard to break your eyes away.

"Why did you move here, then?" He pressed.

I came up short for a response. No one had asked me that so directly before.

"It's... complicated." I hedged.

"I think I can keep up." He said with a smirk.

I thought for a minute before responding. Then, I made the mistake of looking into his golden eyes, and answered without thinking.

"My mother, she got remarried."

"That doesn't sound so complex." He disagreed, then his face shifted to sympathetic. "What did that happen?"

"Last September." I was surprised to hear the sadness in my voice.

"And, I'm guessing, you don't like him much." Edward surmised, his voice keeping that soft, kind tone.

"No, Phil is fine. A bit young, maybe, but nice enough."

"Why didn't you stay with them?"

I couldn't understand his interest, but he continued to stare at me. It was as if his eyes were penetrating my soul, and he found my boring life story to be the most interesting thing he had ever heard.

"Phil travels a lot. He plays baseball for a living." I gave a small smile.

"Have I heard of him?" He asked, smiling.

I felt like I was in some sort of cheesy teen sitcom. 'One of the schools coolest guys gets paired up in class with the new dorky girl. They meet, and bond over life stories.'

"Probably not. He isn't the best player, strictly minor league. He moves around a lot."

"And your mother sent you here so that she could travel with him." He guessed, obviously thinking he had fit puzzle pieces together.

"No." I huffed. "She did not send me here. I sent myself."

His eyebrows knit together. "I don't understand." He admitted, seeming overly frustrated by it.

I sighed, wondering why I was telling him all of this. He continued to look at me with obvious curiosity.

"She stayed with me at first, but she missed him. It made her unhappy... so I decided it was time to spend some quality time with Charlie." I sighed again at when I finished talking.

"But... now you are unhappy." He pointed out, still looking confused.

"And?" I challenged, crossing my arms.

"That doesn't seem fair." He shrugged, but his eyes were still tense.

I laughed without humor. "Hasn't anyone ever told you? Life isn't fair."

"I believe I have heard that somewhere before." He said dryly.

"So that's all." I insisted, my arms falling to rest on top of the desk.

His eyes roamed over me, appraising me. "You put on a good show." He said slowly. "But I'd be willing to be that you're suffering more than you let anyone see."

My chin lifted defiantly, as I resisted the urge to stick out my tongue like a five-year-old.

"Am I wrong?" He pressed.

I ignored him, picking up my pencil and trying to concentrate on the paperwork I had yet to finish.

"I didn't think so." I risked a glance, and saw the smug smirk on his face.

"Why does it matter to you, anyways?" I asked, irritated.

"That's a very good question." He muttered, so quietly that I wasn't sure if he meant for me to hear it or not. When he didn't continue, I took it to mean our conversation was over.

I sighed, and scowled at my paper.

"Am I annoying you?" He asked with a slight chuckle.

I looked at him again, without thinking and blurted the truth again. "Not exactly. I'm more annoyed at myself. My face is so easy to read." I sighed.

"On the contrary, I find you very difficult to read." He said, sounding like he honestly couldn't read me as well as most people seemed to be able to.

"You must not be good at it." I said sarcastically, testing his ability to take a joke. I have noticed a lot of people around here seem to have no ability to understand sarcasm.

He laughed, flashing a set of perfect, ultra white teeth. "Usually I am. There must be something wrong with you, to make you so difficult for me to read."

I snorted at his comment, and turned back to my paper. So, he could take a joke, but he had hit a little close to home. Through out this move from Phoenix to Forks, I had thought about how things would be when I got here. I had never really fit in with kids in school back there, and now, I had to try and fit in at a school that is maybe half the size of my old one. I always wondered about if maybe I saw things differently than other people. I had wondered if maybe there was some sort of glitch in my brain that made me different.

Before long, the bell rang to signal the end of class, and Mr. Banner collected our worksheets. Edward rushed as swiftly from the room as he had last Monday. And, like last Monday, I stared after him, wondering what had happened between us.

Mike quickly took his spot next to me, and picked up my books for me. I smiled, and we started walking towards the door.

"That was awful. I was so bored." He groaned, letting me leave ahead of him.

"It wasn't horrible." I shrugged.

"Cullen seemed friendly enough today." He commented as we walked. He didn't seem please by that, but tried to act like he didn't care.

I tried to act indifferent, too. "I wonder what was with him last Monday?"

Luckily, Mike chattered away the entire walk to gym. By the time I walked out to the parking lot, the rain was just a gentle mist, it was almost soothing, but I was still happier when I climbed into the cab of my truck. I looked around me to make sure it was clear, and that was when I noticed him. Edward Cullen was leaning against the front of the silver Volvo, three cars down from me, and staring intently in my direction. I quickly looked away, and tried to ignore him as I shifted the truck into reverse. I slammed on the break just in time, I hadn't noticed the Toyota moving slowly right behind me. It was just the sort of car my truck would make scrap metal of. I took a deep breath to calm myself, and cautiously pulled out again. I stared straight ahead as I passed Edward and the Volvo, but I could just make him out in my peripheral. And he was laughing.

A/N: Holy hell! This chapter took a while to write, and it is a good 1,000 words longer than the first one! I wanted to clear up a couple things really quick, too. I said that this story was going page by page with the book, but I wanted to add in that it is (obviously) not word for word. I will be skipping whole paragraphs, and maybe even pages from time to time. And, once it gets into the meat and potatoes of it, things will be considerably different. The beginning is just very similar, because the only change is the fact that the Cullen's and Hale's are social. It is still the meeting the characters and setting up the plot line stuff for now, so you won't notice a whole lot of difference. Just keep reading, and it will be more and more obvious with changes. Some start in this chapter, getting it ready to change a lot. It is chapter 9 in the book when Bella finds out that Edward is a vampire, and I intend for it to be chapter 9 of this story when she finds out that he is a vampire, too. There will just be changes to what happens. lol OK, I hope you enjoyed.

Please review!!

~AP