Chapter 2.

Nessie – new friends

It was almost pathetic how excited I felt about starting school. I couldn't entirely hide it from my dad, but I was especially grateful that Uncle Jasper was away, he would have thought that I was losing it. It was so silly, I mean, I was so far ahead of high school academics, but in other ways my excitement made perfect sense. I was finally going to be human, sort of.

That didn't mean much to any of the Cullens, except my mother. She was the most human member of the family; probably having Grandpa around gave her that connection. Perhaps I did too; she would always have a half-human daughter. I could tell that my mom was happy for me, but probably a bit worried about how I was going to cope.

I wasn't worried. It might take a few weeks, but I was confident that, with the right attitude, I would soon get the hang of things. I was eager to get started. I remembered everything that I had been stopped from doing over the years. I knew they felt bad, but my family had had no choice; it would have exposed us all, if I had become too conspicuous. But even now, I wistfully thought of Kung Fu and ballet lessons…

I told myself that preparation was the key to successful integration and started phoning around the family for advice. Apparently the frustration and annoyance that had built up from years attending high school, was like a dam ready to crack. My innocent enquiries caused the waters to overflow. They all had something to say. I had to listen to hours of angry anecdotes about idiot kids and brain dead teachers. Annoying gym classes, boring exams, foul smelling food; I heard it all.

Of course, everyone wished me luck, but only as an afterthought. Although the advice was pretty eclectic and contradictory at times, there were some gems too. The only point that everyone agreed on, was that I should try not to stand out.

For example, if I were to answer a question in class, I should be polite, but keep it short and not elaborate. It might raise awkward questions, if I was seen to know more than the teachers, and possibly gain the resentment of my fellow students

I was strongly recommended to keep my competitive streak under control in gym. I had to aim for average. Luckily, some of the things that my family had to work at weren't issues for me. I blinked reflexively, I fidgeted, I could eat human food and I wouldn't have to constantly fight the desire to dine on my classmates instead. I could also go into the sun, I was warm blooded and I even had a pulse! These factors put me in a better position to blend in than the other Cullens and they had got away with attending high school for years.

On the first day of school I was up and showered extra early. There wasn't much else to do; I had already chosen my outfit. My mom had told me that I should wear something low key, like jeans and a sweater. That was no problem, Aunt Rose had sent me several pairs of jeans, and I had a dusky rose cashmere sweater, which Aunt Alice had bought in London. They were perfect; I was sure to fit in wearing those!

I wasn't quite sure how to do my hair. It would have been nice to have Aunt Alice to help, but on second thoughts, she did have a tendency to go a little over the top. I settled for a half pony tail. If only I wore glasses, then I could add a studious air to my appearance. I suppose I could have some fake ones made, but it was a little late for that now.

I bounded down the stairs and into the kitchen. Grandpa Charlie and Sue were already up.

"Hello, sunshine," said Grandpa indulgently. "Your mom was never such an early riser. At least you don't miss the best part of the day."

I avoided mentioning that that was no longer a problem for Mom and stuck to the conventional, "Good morning."

"I made you a proper breakfast." Sue handed me a plate piled with bacon, eggs and toast. Yuk! Lucky I was an immortal, otherwise the cholesterol might have killed me. I was suddenly worried about Grandpa, until I remembered that Dr Gerandy had him on a low fat diet. He was eating cereal.

"Thanks," I proceeded to try and force down my breakfast under the scrutiny of Sue's eagle eyes. Luckily for me, Seth created a distraction by coming into the kitchen. Of course he wanted a huge helping, so it was easy to push some of my food onto his plate, when Sue's back was turned. Charlie didn't rat me out. I started to realise, that eating breakfast was only the first sacrifice that I would have to make to be human. I wondered what else I would have to do.

I wasn't going to be driving my Audi to school this morning. Seth and Jacob had promised Grandpa that they would see me there safely. Of course, we would be the biggest danger in the school yard that morning, so it was a bit of a moot point. I must admit I was glad of the moral support. Jake arrived before we were ready, so he was given a helping of breakfast too. That was probably his aim.

I put on my dark brown jacket and brown boots – they worked well with the pale pink sweater – and I was ready to go. I had to drag Jake out of his chair and after kissing Grandpa and Sue goodbye, I was off.

We arrived in the parking lot in plenty of time. I could hardly wait to get out of the car. It was a pity about the rain; I hoped it didn't mess up my clothes. I wanted to make a good impression. It was so exciting, I felt as if I was in one of those school movies, but it was for real! I looked around me at the buildings and the other kids. Luckily they didn't look unfriendly.

'This is so exciting; it's a proper school with students and everything!'

Seth laughed and Jake snorted. He didn't rate school the way I did. Of course he had actually attended one, so the novelty might have worn off for him. We made our way up to the front entrance. I made sure to smile at the kids we passed. I secretly wondered if any of them would want to be friends with me.

Jacob found the admissions office and the middle aged secretary gave me the forms I needed to fill in. She had been expecting me, it was really nice. She said that she remembered my Uncle Edward. She was a little hazy when I asked if she knew my Aunt Bella. But she still made me feel very welcome. Jake and Seth waited as I completed all the paperwork. When I was finally done, I suddenly felt a little nervous. The time had finally come for me to put all my preparation to the test. What if I wasn't up to the challenge?

I looked at Jake for reassurance. He seemed far more anxious than me. It was pretty funny. I suddenly relaxed; it didn't matter if I got everything wrong, Jacob and my family would always love me. Maybe if I survived a whole week at school we have a celebratory hunting trip at the weekend. I touched his face to show him my plan.

He smiled and gave me hug. Seth pulled his arm and they left me in the office. I had to wait there, until a senior girl called Kristy Larsson arrived. She had been assigned to take me to my first class. She popped her head around the office door with such a friendly grin, that the last of my worries evaporated.

She turned out to be just the right person to take me around. She was a little shorter than me and slightly overweight. She had wavy, light brown hair, a very pretty face and a big smiling mouth. She seemed to be on good terms with everyone we passed. We arrived in English a few minutes late. No one minded. They were all really friendly, even my teacher, Mr Kent. I was allowed to sit with Kristy.

"I guess we just missed the traditional 'senior year' lecture, thank God," she whispered as we sat down.

"What do you mean?" I whispered back and noticed several people glance in our direction.

"My cousin told me, that on the first day of senior year, every teacher starts their class with a lecture. They're always about how you will need to work hardest in their class and the impact it will have on the rest of your life, blah blah blah…!" She giggled and raised her eyes.

I smiled back and wondered if the teachers were right about the impact on your life, for me at least.

My first ever class went well. We were mainly going over the plan for the year and getting our reading lists and study guides. Kristy whispered to me most of the time, filling me in about the school and the rest of the senior year. She was very funny and I was glad that I had already met one nice person. She even offered to show me around for the rest of the day and I accepted with real gratitude.

When the bell rang, a lot of my classmates came over to say 'hi' as we were clearing away our books. A couple of them even asked me if I needed to be shown around. Kristy had already offered, but I appreciated the gestures. I couldn't believe how friendly everyone was. I would have chatted longer, but Kristy said that we would be late for our next class. I hurried out of the room. I didn't want to get into trouble on my very first day!

Morning lessons flew by; I tried my best not to do anything out of the ordinary. There was a lot of whispering, everyone was catching up after the holidays. My extra hearing allowed me to eavesdrop and find out a little more about the other seniors. I didn't feel too guilty about that, as no one said anything very personal. I memorised all the names I heard and tried to understand the network of relationships, tying it in to what Kristy had already told me. I even managed to listen to the lessons – a little bit – it was difficult; everything else was so much more interesting.

At lunch time Kristy found me again and took me to the cafeteria. I could have just followed my nose. It was a little intimidating walking into the crowded cafeteria for the first time. New students clearly got a lot of attention in this school. As I walked in, every single person there – including the serving staff – turned and looked at me. I reminded myself, that this was what any newcomer could expect in a small school and just smiled.

Kristy hustled me into the queue and made recommendations, as I chose my lunch. Luckily I had been prepared for this dilemma. None of the food looked very appetising, so I just took small portions.

"You should sit with us." She pulled my arm and led me to a table right in the middle of the room.

We sat down with a couple of students, who I had already met in English, including Kristy's best friend, a tall, blonde girl called Leanne Van Aarden. They were clearly very popular, because within minutes our table was packed and so were the ones nearby. Kristy fell into an easy conversation with a couple of kids next to her.

I had been keeping quiet up until now, but I realised that if I wanted to make friends I really should make some effort. There was a dark haired boy from my English class, called Jason McCreedy, sitting opposite me. I noticed a surfing magazine was poking out of his bag.

I caught his eye and said in my most friendly voice, "Do you surf?" This seemed like a reasonable conversation opener.

He looked a little surprised and grinned, "I try to!"

I smiled and took a reluctant bite out of my apple. Some of the kids nearby fell silent, listening to us. They must have been interested in surfing too.

"How about you?" He asked, grinning back. He had a very nice smile.

"Yes, I do." I had been taken to the shore by Jake and the pack since I was a little kid. I loved it. My dad had to remind me not to show off too much. I had become practiced in the art of deliberately falling off my board.

"A few of the guys surf nearby, you should come with us sometime."

"That would be great." It felt nice to be included.

This was by no means the only social invitation that I received that day. Added to which, several kids mentioned the senior year clubs and societies. I knew that I wouldn't be able to attend them all, but I started to realise that my social calendar was going to be pretty full.

By the time Jacob and Seth arrived to collect me, I was on the way to knowing most of the senior year. I was waiting in the parking lot, chatting to some other students, when they pulled up. Jacob got out of the car and waved to me, he towered over the kids standing nearby. They cast nervous glances in his direction.

"There's my ride." Waving goodbye, I skipped across the tarmac, bursting with news.

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