Alice shut the door to Rosalie's house carefully, not wanting to slam it shut and alert the people in the house of her departure. She wasn't entirely sure if Edward and Rosalie were still asleep, but she needed time to herself to think without dealing with the two of them. She slipped into her car, flinching as her bare legs not covered by her shorts touched the sticky leather of the seat. She turned the car on and pulled out of the extra long driveway, not bothering to flip on the radio. The sounds of the small town coming to life were background noise enough for her quick drive.
The coffee burned her tongue as she took her first sip, settling into the hard chair. Her phone vibrated in her pocket and she unlocked it to find a missed call from her mother. Alice's mother was the hands-off type, leaving Alice to live her life as she pleased, but even she noticed when her daughter didn't come home at night. Her finger itched to call her mother back, but Alice ignored the call and placed the phone back in her pocket. She knew what she was really craving was for somebody to notice her absence and care. Once her mother realized she was at the Hale's, there wouldn't be much interest left. Alice's fingers picked at her bagel, but none of the pieces that she ripped off made it into her mouth.
Leaving Starbucks an hour later, Alice felt that she had reached a new understanding with herself. She had let her emotions eat away at her until they had erupted last night, but Alice was determined not to relive that feeling curled up in front of the fireplace. The hot coffee warmed her body and Alice smiled to herself, exiting the coffee shop. She was going to take control of her life. And with that in mind she made her way to school.
Sliding out of her car and walking up to the school, Alice noted the packed parking lot. She glanced at her watch and picked up the pace, she was further behind than she thought. Alice spotted Rosalie's red convertible, parked in the usual spot. That meant Rosalie and Edward had beat her here. Alice checked her phone and found no messages from them. Apparently they hadn't noticed her absence that morning, or simply didn't care. Don't focus on that, Alice reminded herself, steeling herself as she approached the front door to the small school.
The sound of her classmates assaulted her ears the second she stepped through the doors. Normally at seven in the morning her classmates could barely mumble a hello to each other, but today they were animated, excitedly looking around at each other. People were glancing all around them, like they were looking for something although Alice couldn't fathom what that something was.
Alice spotted Emmett gathering books at his locker with Angela leaning beside him, chatting away. About what, Alice had no idea. She could barely get Angela to say two words to her despite her many attempts. Although, it was for the better now that Alice knew what she did about Rosalie and Emmett. Being friends with Angela would put Alice in a position that she wasn't entirely comfortable with.
"What's going on with everyone?" Alice asked when she reached the couple. Angela quickly stopped talking to Emmett and turned to Alice with a smile on her face.
"Hi, Alice." Emmett greeted her.
"We just got a new student." Angela answered, excitedly, the first time Alice was able to describe Angela as having any other emotion than happy. To get Angela worked up about gossip was nearly impossible.
Alice presumed Angela's hatred of gossip had something to do with the rumor that Rosalie started when they were younger that Angela liked girls. Angela had never said anything but soon after, Angela and Emmett got together and the rumor died down. Alice still felt bad for not being able to stop Rosalie from spreading that rumor. Angela truly was a good person and didn't deserve it but once Rosalie decided something it was nearly impossible to stop her.
Alice smiled to them as she thanked them and walked away, taking in the new information. Their small town hadn't received a new student in probably ten years, long before Alice had gotten sick of the familiar faces of her classmates.
Alice walked down the hallway, looking around for a new face in the sea of people that she had known since kindergarten, but came up short. Alice stopped her search when she spotted Edward leaning against Rosalie's locker, as usual. Suppressing the urge to roll her eyes, because of course he was at Rosalie's locker, she walked over to him.
"Did you hear the news?" Alice asked, cheerfully, hoping he wouldn't bring up her disappearance that morning. Naturally, he didn't and even Alice's upbeat tone barely registered with Edward as he ignored her, choosing instead to scowl at his cellphone before shoving it roughly into his pocket. He ran a hand angrily through his copper hair, seeming to struggle to keep his eyes open. Edward was by no means a morning person and, from the lack of coffee cup in his hand, was caffeine deprived that morning.
Alice waited patiently for him to acknowledge her, as she knew from experience that he eventually would. In the meantime, she tapped her foot on the tile, hoping to drawn his attention towards her. It didn't work and Alice finally spotted what, or rather who, he was staring at down the hallway.
Rosalie made her way towards them, her blonde hair coiled on top of her head as she looked around, smiling at the people she was friendly with. Edward scowled as a few of the guys in the hall checked her out, but otherwise continued to ignore Alice and her tapping foot.
"Edward!" Alice nearly shouted, hitting him gently with her textbook to draw his attention away from Rosalie once her patience had worn thin.
Edward's scowl intensified as he saw Rosalie pause to talk to Royce and he reluctantly turned to Alice.
"What news, Alice?" He sighed, seeming to force his head to remain facing away from Rosalie and towards Alice, not even bothering to hide his annoyance. Whether the annoyance was directed towards Royce, Rosalie, or Alice was anyone's guess.
"There's a new girl." Alice said happily ignoring the look in his eye, while scanning the crowd again for a new face, but coming up short once again.
"A new girl, huh?" Edward said, slowly, the annoyance fading from his eyes as he turned this information over in his head, searching for the usefulness of a new face in their town. He got that look in his eye, the one he usually only got around Rosalie, that signified to Alice that anything she said would just go over his head because he was done listening.
Edward and Rosalie may be attached at the hip, but he certainly found time to make his way through the female population of their town. Barely any formal dating, of course, Rosalie was crazy jealous of any girl Edward spoke to, but he did get around and knew that he had quite the reputation around their town.
A new girl meant somebody who knew nothing about his reputation. And, if Edward was honest with himself, he was beginning to want more from Rosalie than their weird, undefined, relationship, and she seemed unwilling to give it. Of course, Edward had never expressed this to Rosalie, but he didn't foresee that as a possibility for him. This new girl, though, presented unlimited opportunities.
Alice could practically hear the gears turning in his head.
Just then Rosalie reached the group, smiling at both Alice and Edward, who ignored her. Edward seemed possessed by thoughts of a new face that brought with it new openings for him in his life. Rosalie pushed Edward away from her locker and glared at him as she spun in the code.
"What's his dreamy expression for?" She grumbled to Alice, mad that her simply being there had done nothing to gain Edward's attention.
"We got a new girl at school." Alice said carefully anticipating Rosalie's reaction. Alice watched Rosalie's hands pause on the dial before swinging her locked open forcefully and starting to gather her books with purpose without saying a word.
Edward still hadn't paid Rosalie any attention since she had arrived. Rosalie's glare intensified as she attributed Edward's lack of response to this new information.
"What is she, a supermodel?" She asked Alice sharply, ignoring Edward just as he was ignoring her. Neither was having much success at gaining what they wanted in the situation.
"He hasn't even seen her, Rosalie, nobody has. I just heard about it." Alice left out the part about hearing it from Angela, fearing Rosalie's reaction, especially when she was already visibly wound up.
"Well, she's obviously going to be hideous." Rosalie said, already turning the new girl into a social pariah in her head. It wouldn't be hard for her to do, most people turned to Rosalie to keep up to date on who it was consider appropriate to talk to.
Once, freshman year, a girl insulted Rosalie's new outfit and had to transfer schools the next month, Rosalie, and thus the entire freshman class, was so terrible to her. Even the upperclassmen had gotten involved, taking Rosalie's side. After that, everyone in the school had understood not to mess with Rosalie Hale, and by extent, Edward and Alice. Alice didn't exactly approve of Rosalie's methods of getting her way, but she didn't do anything to stop her. Jasper tried, but he was still traveling with his parents so he could do nothing for the new girl, and, if Alice was honest with herself, his efforts barely did anything anyways.
This time would be different, Alice tried to tell herself. She would protect this new girl from Rosalie's wrath. After all, the girl hadn't even done anything wrong yet and Alice's patience towards Rosalie was wearing thin.
Rosalie used her history book to hit Edward's shoulder and the crack brought Alice back to the present, newly determined to keep this new girl safe.
Rosalie was still angry at being ignored and more so at the idea that he could be daydreaming about another girl right in front of her. Edward turned to Rosalie, a huge smile on his face when he realized the source of Rosalie's anger was the faceless, nameless girl.
"Now, now, no need to be jealous, Rosie." He smirked at her answering glare, tugging gently on a piece of her blonde hair that had escaped her bun.
"Don't call me Rosie." She protested, twirling the stray hair back into place. Edward hardly ever listened to her protests against the despised nickname, so she didn't bother to put much force behind her words.
Just then, the much discussed new face came into Alice's view down the hallway. The girl was pretty, that was obvious from looking at her, and from the way that the boys were in the hallway were currently looking at her, they noticed. She dark brown hair that contrasted her pale skin and Alice could spot her deep brown eyes from where she stood, they were rounded as she looked the people around them and found them blatantly staring back.
Of course, even as pretty as she was, she was still nowhere near as beautiful as Rosalie, Alice determined to herself. Rosalie was a timeless beauty, with a nasty attitude that contrasted her regal looks.
Rosalie noticed the girl mere seconds after Alice had, judging by the change in her body language towards Edward.
"That must be her." She said in a determined voice, straightening her back and slamming her locker shut.
"Rose, don't do anything dramatic." Alice warned, trying to keep Rosalie in order before the girl could become a problem. Who knew what an angry and jealous Rosalie would do to this poor girl who had done nothing but catch Edward's attention. And it wasn't just Edward by the looks of it. The new girl had nearly everyone staring at her, the guys' eyes filling with the same possibilities that Edward's had.
Edward himself was currently wrapped up in examining the girl, which Rosalie's pale blue eyes inevitably noticed. Alice watched his expression and it wasn't one that matched the rest of the guys now. It wasn't one of lust, but a neutral examination, as if he was checking that the girl could fit the role he had obviously already painted for her.
Rosalie ignored Alice's warning and made her way to where the girl was standing, paused nearly in the middle of the hallway, looking frantically from a piece of paper to the classrooms around her. The girl looked up as Rosalie neared, her eyes widening even further as she took in Rosalie's presence and expression, as well as the stares of their peers.
"Hi, I'm Rosalie Hale." She introduced herself, turning the hard stare into a deceptively sweet smile. Rosalie's smile did little to relax the girl.
"Isabella Swan." Rosalie looked the girl over, noting her rough jeans and plain blue shirt. But still, the girl had potential, she couldn't deny, though she was reluctant to admit it.
"Okay, Bella. Follow me." She said, finishing her assessment of her and making her way back to where Edward and Alice were standing by her locker. Rosalie barely registered if Bella was following her and completely ignored the girl's attempts at insisting her name was Isabella.
"Alice, Edward, this is Bella Swan." Rosalie said, presenting Bella like a new gift for Edward and Alice to see.
"Isa-" Bella started to correct before Rosalie cut her off with a glare, effectively silencing her protests against her new name.
Sensing Bella's nervousness, Alice stepped forward with a kind smile on her face. She wanted this girl to be accepted, to be liked. Bella had a kind face and an easy smile, something Alice both instantly liked and envied in her. Alice spent too much time with the never smiling Rosalie and Edward that Bella's smiling face was a nice change.
"Hi, Bella. I'm Alice and this is Edward and Rosalie. Ignore Rosalie, she's a little pissy today." Bella accepted Alice's niceties with a grateful smile and gentle laugh. Edward smiled at at Bella as Alice glanced over at Rosalie and found her fuming at Alice's attempt at light humor.
Alice shouldn't have chosen Rosalie as the butt of her joke. Bella wouldn't notice the anger, very few would, as it was extremely subtle, but Rosalie's stance was rigid and her eyes bled anger if you knew her well enough to detect it.
Alice turned quickly to Bella, taking the paper schedule from her hand in an attempt to defuse the bomb that had become Rosalie. She was waiting to go off on Bella, Alice could tell from Rosalie's eyes alone. Edward continued his silence throughout the whole encounter, probably excited to watch Rosalie explode.
"Let me show you to your classes. See you guys later." Alice said, leading Bella quickly away from the two, Rosalie's glare becoming more obvious to anyone watching the further Bella walked.
"Well, she seems nice." Edward said, smirking at Rosalie's now obvious and visible annoyance.
"She seems like a total pushover. And what was she even wearing like honestly." She ranted, grabbing Edward's hand and pulling him towards their next class.
Their hands remained interlocked and Edward ran his fingers gently over her knuckles in an attempt to calm her down. It seemed to work as Rosalie's posture relaxed the more they walked and the fire cooled in her eyes. Edward smiled at her and she smiled back, a rare genuine smile and Edward remembered why he tolerated Rosalie at her worst.
They continued on this way, a joined unison walking hand in hand to class, until a small body came crashing into Edward's, forcing his hand out of Rosalie's.
"Woah, watch yourself." Both Edward and Rosalie quipped at the same time.
The brunette moved quickly away from his body, bending down to pick up her books mumbling apologies. When she stood up, Edward recognized her from earlier.
"Bella, right?" He asked her, watching the blood run to her cheeks. He glanced over her shoulder quickly, finding Rosalie watching them from barely a foot away where she must have stopped after Bella crashed into him.
With a quick smirk at Rosalie, his hand lingering on Bella's hand as he helped her up. Payback for last night at the diner and those other guys. Rosalie stormed away and Edward turned back to Bella, finding her cheeks burning. Huh. She must have thought the smirk was to her.
"Isabella, actually. But that girl, Rosalie, said… I don't really know actually. She didn't like my name maybe?" Bella smiled gently, trailing off. Edward let out a short laugh.
"Yeah, Rosie likes things her way. I think Bella suits you though." He smiled at her again, leaning in closer to give her a quick wink.
A newly manicured hand came down hard on his shoulder. Rosalie hadn't gone as far as he had thought, apparently.
"Edward, dear, stop flirting. And don't call me Rosie." Rosalie said, glaring at him before fixing Bella with a smile.
"Bella, I'm going to give you a shot at making your time at this God forsaken high school interesting. Meet us at the diner after school. It isn't hard to find, just go to the only restaurant on this road." With that Rosalie left, not caring about Bella's answer or bothering to wait for Edward. He had obviously pissed her off simply by talking to Bella.
Edward rolled his eyes at Rosalie's antics, and not just fully for Bella's benefit. Rosalie was so obviously trying to mark her apparent territory that it was almost laughable. And that snotty voice? Yes, Rosalie was a bit snobbish but that was another level that Edward hadn't encountered before and it was almost laughable.
Bella turned to Edward and, seeing his eye roll, proceeded with her thoughts on Rosalie, "I don't know about her. I mean, I met this other girl, Angela, who seems really nice but Rosalie, seems, interesting I guess?" Bella questioned, fixing the bag on her shoulder.
Edward raised an eyebrow, grateful that Rosalie was out of range of hearing. Angela was currently walking down the hallway, hand in hand with Emmett, her boyfriend who was staring at Rosalie as if she was his personal angel.
Bella may not understand it yet, but it was impossible to be friends with both Angela and Rosalie. He had watched Alice try and come up short. Rosalie could try and be subtle with Emmett but it was obvious to Edward and Alice what was going on between them.
"What class do you have?" He asked, beginning to walk and Bella fell into step beside him.
"Um, biology. Alice pointed me in the right way, but she had to go and I kind of got lost after using the bathroom." She smiled sheepishly.
Edward watched Bella speak and couldn't help but notice the differences between her and Rosalie. No girl was quite like Rosalie, of course, but it seemed like Bella had been designed to be Rosalie's opposite. On the shorter side, with rich, dark hair and matching dark brown eyes, not to mention her quieter voice and small smiles, she seemed nothing like Rosalie. But she wasn't a pushover like Rosalie thought, Edward noted, he noticed something inside of her that signified a fire inside of her.
He internally scolded himself for getting so mushy. And not even about Rosalie, like he usually did. And his pause must have been slightly too long because Bella was giving him a weird look, so he quickly spoke.
"I have biology now as well. Lucky you." He said with a smirk, eyeing her cheeks for the inevitable blush. Girls go weak at his smirk and this girl already seemed fond of blushing around him.
Bella's cheeks remained porcelain, to his surprise. Instead she simply smiled at him and Edward found himself smiling back.
He noticed Rosalie then, leaning against Royce's locker. The look she was giving Edward wasn't angry or jealous, like he would expect, it was calculating. Like she was staring at a math problem that she didn't fully understand. It made Edward uneasy, but Bella didn't seem to notice as she chattered away about her home life.
Edward barely listened to Bella's explanation of her whole moving from Phoenix situation, too focused on trying to read the weird expression on Rosalie's face. Until he heard one memorable name come from Bella's mouth. Charlie Swan.
"Officer Swan is your father?" He asked quickly, cutting her off in the middle of a sentence. She flushed red.
"Yes, but he's good old dad to me. Well, still Charlie to me actually, but same thing I suppose." Edward had gotten into trouble with Officer Swan numerous times for underage drinking, but Rosalie's family always stepped in at her request.
It wasn't likely that the Hale's would get in trouble for anything in this town. It was so small that everyone knew everyone's business and absolutely nobody messed with the Hale's, not even the police department. They were easily the richest and most influential people in the town. It was really no wonder that Rosalie had grown up the way she had, Edward didn't blame her. If he has been taught from a young age that he was untouchable, he'd be as fucked up as Rosalie was.
Jasper had a more human side to him, as Edward knew that Alice liked to think, but really, Jasper grew up the same as Rosalie, thinking his family was the best the town had to offer. The kids were practically untouchable from all the money the Hale's donated to the police foundation yearly. To fall from the graces of the Hale's meant no more money, the police knew that and they weren't likely to mess that up simply because of underage drinking.
Charlie Swan cared less about all of the politics of the matter. He was a simple man that believed if you break the law, you should be punished. Edward knew that he saw the Hales, and Edward as an extension, as spoiled kids and yet there was nothing that he could do about it. Officer Swan hated Edward and he would undeniably be pissed at Bella hanging around with Edward, a thought which filled him with joy.
Edward slipped his arm around Bella's shoulder as the possibilities of pissing off the dear old officer flitted through his head. And she wasn't so bad to look at, which was a plus.
"Bella, you and I are going to be great friends." He smiled, squeezing her tight as Bella smiled up at him and Rosalie looked on, the strange look still on her face.