I sat down next to my new English partner and was about to get my books out of my bag when he raised his hand to greet me.
"Hello, it's lovely to meet you. My name is Jasper," the blonde haired boy, Jasper, said.
I shook his hand politely and continued the formal greeting.
"I'm Bella, it's a pleasure. Tell me, what brings you to Forks?" I wondered what such a large group of Vampires could be doing here. Surely they couldn't all blend in. Could they? I mean, I knew the attraction that Forks held, the almost sunless days, the almost constant rain. I was just curious as to why he personally had moved here. I wondered if he could tell what I was.
"Well, my father, foster father, got a job working at the local hospital so I along with my brothers and sisters have enrolled in this school," I could tell he was slightly taken aback by my abrupt question and I moved closer to him to whisper conspiratorially in his ear.
"I know what you are."
He stiffened, and then cocked his head to the side, like he was listening for something. Listening for the beat of my heart, I guessed. When he found no sound he simply nodded. He then asked me a most unexpected question, he asked me to accompany him to his house at the end of the day. I agreed whole-heartedly. The rest of the English lesson passed in silence and when the bell rang we agreed to meet by the front gate. I would be going in his car as I had walked to school this morning.
My next lesson was Trigonometry, and the most annoying girl sat down next to me. It was like I could say anything to her, and she would just warp it, like I was trying to be friends with her, and she was so vain! Uhhh. Humans, I never will understand them!
But when she invited me to sit with her at lunch that was just about all I could take, and I had to remind myself that I had been human once too, though not like her. Never like her.
"I'm sorry but I have some rather urgent business that I need to take care of, if you will excuse me," and without waiting for a reply I stepped around her and headed in the opposite direction to the lunch hall.
I found the woods surrounding the school easily enough; I left through the front drive and crossed the road into the semi-darkness of the shrouded trees. I could immediately tell that I would spend a lot of my time here, and happily started wandering. I decided to go for a run, as the day was crisp and I wanted the feel of the wind in my face, blowing my hair.
All too soon I heard the familiar sound of the school bell and turned around and sprinted in the opposite direction, back to school. Not that anybody would mind if I ditched school, I had no family to worry about me. But that was the whole problem, I didn't want the teachers ringing the number I gave them and finding out my 'family' didn't exist.
Biology used to be one of my favourite subjects but over the years everything seems to be the same, dull, boring and monotonous. But today was different, I had a new teacher, maybe he would have new ways of doing things. Or not.
The teacher walked into class and handed everyone a textbook and started a talk on the human anatomy, which I had to admit was the most boring thing I had come across in all my years of lessons. The clock ticked by slowly, each tick seeming to take longer to come than the last, and I started to speculate about the others I had seen. Jasper had seemed very nice, friendly and almost leonine. I was guessing that he had found his mate in the small pixie like girl. The big brawny one, more like a bear, was with the blonde model. It was obvious, no doubt about it. The way he watched her and she watched him left me in no doubt about that one. But the bronze haired boy, he didn't look like he'd been with anyone.
Unless she hadn't come to school today.
Or she was on holiday.
Or they had had a fight.
Or he hadn't told her how he felt.
Or….
I really should stop speculating.
The bell finally rang and I walked through the drizzle outside to the gym. No one tried to help me. For that I was glad, obviously the girl from Trigonometry had said I wasn't very friendly and no one had wanted to speak to me for fear that my bite was worse than my bark. I laughed at the thought.
Gym passed in a blur. We all stood in a line and took it in turns to dribble a ball up court and shoot in the hoop. Of course I got it in every time. I could faintly remember a time when just putting a ball in my hand could mean no amount of injuries, but I didn't hit anyone any more. Or trip over my own feet.
When Gym finished I headed off to the front gate, Jasper was waiting for me. I slid into the passenger seat of his car and he took off. Once we were out of sight of prying eyes he sped up, doing nearly two hundred miles an hour and were soon pulling up to an exquisite two story house, with a wide overhanging porch.
He led me to the front door and walked in, beckoning me to follow. I deliberated and strode confidently forward. I blanched. What I saw did not encourage me.