Ch. 2: Broken

"We have a son, Emmett, he may seem a little frightening at first. But don't worry, he wouldn't hurt a fly. Our daughter, Alice, gets along with everyone. I think you'll like her. We also have another son, Edward, he is adopted. He keeps to himself a lot, so don't take it personal if he doesn't take an interest in you." Dr. Cullen was giving me the low down on his family. I'll admit it, he had a voice to match his looks. He was very handsome, I'll give him that much. Mrs. Cullen had a warm face, that would make a stranger automatically very trustworthy of her. I tried to picture what their kids would look like, but came up with nothing. Children make it harder in a sense. Especially if they are young. Young kids get attach way to easily. I guess you could say that I have learned a lot in my four years in foster care. That's what happens, though, you learn a lot. Some things, you didn't even want to know.

We got off the highway, and pulled off onto a drive way deep in the woods. Then, a massive white house came into view. It had to have at least three stories, a huge garage off to the side, and a porch. They're rich, go figure. I looked around for any sign of life, but the house was empty. "All the kids are at school. As much as Alice begged to be here, we thought it was best for you if they weren't here. Wouldn't want to overwhelm you." Mrs. Cullen said, grabbing my suitcase from the trunk. Dr. Cullen came up behind her, took the suitcase from her hand, and replaced it with his in hers. They are all lovey dovey, great. I followed the two of them into the huge house. I let out a low whistle when I saw the inside. Off to the right was a living room, two long couches, a chair, a fireplace with pictures lined on the mantle, and a plasma screen TV hanging from the wall. To the left was the dining room, there wasn't anything too special about the room, expect a grand piano in the corner. I almost smiled, but couldn't. My mom made me take lessons for a couple of years. I complained before every lesson, but now I'm glad she pushed me to play.

"I'll give you the grand tour." Mrs. Cullen said, motioning me to follow. We walked through a big doorway, and the kitchen came into the view. She didn't say anything, it was pretty self explanatory. I followed her and Dr. Cullen up a flight of stairs. "Emmett's room, sorry about the mess. I told him to clean it." Mrs. Cullen scolded, as we stopped at a room. I peeked inside out of curiosity. The walls a mix of different colors, it actually looked pretty cool. "Alice's room." She said, as we went to the room across the hall. Everything flashed girl. From the pink walls, to the huge closet in the corner. "This is Carlisle's office. If he isn't working, you will surely find him in here." Mrs. Cullen said, smiling at her husband. The office was a good size, one wall was covered with books, many of which looked ancient. Another wall was covered with paintings, and a big desk sat in the center. I followed them to another flight of stairs. Three floors, I was right. The first room on the left was by far my favorite. It faced the south from what I could see, the back wall was a full window. One wall was covered with shelf after shelf of CDs in one corner of the room was a very sophisticated sound system. A wide, comfortable looking, black leather couch took up the length of another wall. The floor was the color of gold, and there was fabric, a darker shade, covering the walls. Good acoustics. "Edward's room." Mrs. Cullen explained.

After I was done staring at the room, we moved on to the closed door across the hall. "Your room." Mrs. Cullen announced, opening the door. I took a breath, and stepped in. The walls were a dark blue, it didn't scream girl, that was good. A white couch was up against one wall, and a bed was up against the other. A stereo was also in the corner, but nothing as complicated as the one in Edward's room. An empty closet was also taking up space. "I didn't go clothes shopping, because I didn't know what you would like. We can go later on tonight, I'm sure Alice is just dying to come." Mrs. Cullen said, smiling fondly about her daughter. I had that once, but that was a long time ago. "We will leave you to get settled. The kids should be coming home in about a half hour. Just call if you need one of us." Dr. Cullen said, as he and Mrs. Cullen left me alone. I stared at my room once again. It was probably the best room that I've ever had at any foster family. Maybe this is a good sign, although, I highly doubted that. They were probably just showing off, saying they have money. I didn't bother to unpack my suitcase, I just pushed it into the closet.

I walked over and sat down on the white leather couch. Then I realized it was quiet. Deafening. I got up, turned on the stereo, and put on a random station. The song was Broken by Lifehouse. How ironic, I thought. The noise made me a little bit more comfortable. I cant stand silence. To me, silence screams the truth, noise, however, drains it all out. I sat back down on the leather couch, and let the music surround me. Music is my escape. It's that piece of sanity I am able to hold onto no matter where I am. Awhile later, I could distantly hear a car pulling up, doors opening and closing. The house door opened, and I could hear people talking. Dr. Cullen was the easiest voice to pull out of the group. A heard a deep voice, a soprano like voice, and a velvet voice also. I was surprised I didn't hear Mrs. Cullen. Another man, and another woman also spoke. Jeez, how many kids do these people have? I could hear footsteps getting closer and closer, until they were coming from right outside the door. I jumped up, off the couch, there was a quick knock, and then the door opened. The first person I saw was a short girl, with spiky black hair, pointing every which way. Alice, maybe. She stared at me for a moment, and then stepped in, followed by a huge guy with curly blonde hair, and dimples. Emmett. He didn't look scary.

"Oh, wow. I always wanted a sister, having two brothers gets tiring after a while. Way too much work if you ask me. You'll understand what I mean soon enough. Oops, I almost forgot, I'm Alice." Alice said, stepping closer to me. I took a step back, keeping a distance between us. Hurt, or maybe confusion, crossed her face. "Let her breathe, Ali." The big guy said, Emmett. "I'm Emmett." He said, moving to stand next to Alice. I didn't say anything, I wasn't sure if I was supposed to introduce myself, or not. "You're Bella." Alice said, like I'd forgotten my own name. "I think she knows her own name, Alice." A smooth voice came from the door way. I looked up, and a man was leaning against the door frame, arms crossed over his chest. He had unusual bronze hair, and striking emerald green eyes. There was something about him that set him apart from Emmett and Alice.

Alice sighed, frustrated. "Shouldn't you have locked yourself in your room already?" She asked, turned around. The mysterious man rolled his eyes at her. "Carlisle told me, no, demanded me to introduce myself. So, here I am. I'm Edward." He introduced, then just as fast as he was there, he was gone again. "Brothers." Alice muttered. The three of us stood silent, the only noise was coming from my stereo. "Bella, come down stairs, there are people I want you to meet. Please?" Alice asked. I sighed, and followed her and Emmett down the stairs. Edward's door was closed. I guess what I was told about him was true, he did stick to his own business. Good, I have a feeling him and I will get along just fine. We walked into the living room, where two people were occupying one couch, watching TV. One was a blonde guy, with blue eyes. The other was a blonde girl with long hair, and blue eyes. They looked like twins. "Rose, Jasper, this is Bella. Bella this is Rose and Jasper. Rose is Emmett's girlfriend, and Jasper is my boyfriend." Alice explained, smiling. Emmett sat down next to the girl, Rose, and grabbed her hand. Alice walked, or maybe danced, and sat next to Jasper. He smiled down at her. My stomach churned, more love. Great.

I walked and sat down on the chair. I felt their eyes watching me. They acted as if everything was some big deal. "Is she a mute?" Rose asked. "I don't know, maybe, Dad?" Alice called. "I'm not a mute." I said, it sounded more angry then I intended. "What?" Dr. Cullen asked, walking in from the kitchen. "Nothing, never mind." Alice said. He glanced at me once, then walked back the way he came. We sat in an uncomfortable silence. I felt like screaming, but bit my tongue instead. My stomach rumbled, and I remembered I hadn't eaten since about eight this morning. I stood up, making as little noise as possible, and made my way to the kitchen. I passed the piano then, and stopped altogether. I don't know what possessed me, but I all of sudden walked over to it, and sat down on the bench. My fingers ran over the keys fluidly, even though I was a little rusty, it had been a while since I played. It was when I finished the piece that I realized what I had just played. It was the song that I wrote that night. I probably still had the original piece of paper I wrote it on, all tear stained and everything. Anger washed over me then, and I slammed my hands down on the keys, making noise echo through the room.

Playlist:

Broken- Lifehouse

Here We Go Again- Paramore