Bella POV

"Not very," Edward answered, the corner of his mouth lifting into a smirk.

I frowned. Of course someone who was that beautiful- who had such clear, pale skin and curly bronze hair. And was tall and muscular with such perfect, angular features; a person who had such nice clothes, modest, but hinting of designer origins, like his elbow length blue shirt and blue jeans- was going to be smart. I could still feel his topaz eyes staring at me, so flipped my hair to cover my face from his view. His eyes might be beautiful, but the strange stare was starting to worry me.

The bell rang and Mr. Banner started a lecture on cellular anatomy. Maybe Edward wasn't so smart; I had already studied this material, which wasn't that hard anyway. I closed my journal and crossed my pen over it. I peeked through my barrier of hair. Next to me, Edward was taking notes.

Then his pen stopped moving as he looked at me with the same questioning eyes he had been looking at me before with. His eyes held mine. I wondered how it was possible to blush so much when you were no longer breathing, which was exactly what was happening.

He chuckled at my reaction as I looked down in order to take a deep breath and count to ten in my head. I was careful to keep my eyes on the table, or else I would have to start my process over.

"Miss Swan?" Mr. Banner asked for the answer to a question I hadn't heard.

"The Krebs Cycle, Edward whispered to me.

"The Krebs Cycle," I repeated more loudly. Mr. Banner nodded and continued his lecture. I took a piece of paper out of my folder and wrote a quick note, sliding it across the desk.

Thanks, Edward

The corner of his mouth lifted into another smirk. He quickly wrote a small message, and then passed the page back.

You are very welcome, Bella. Class ends soon, you might want to start packing up.

I looked up from his perfectly scripted note. He was right, there was one minute left in class. I gathered my books and put away my pen. As the bell rang, Edward silently stood up, pushed his chair back in, and walked out of the classroom. Nobody else had even stood up.

As I walked out of the classroom, a cool hand tapped my shoulder. I turned around and recognized the girl Jessica had told me was Alice Cullen. She was shorter than my by several inches, with short, black hair.

"Edward likes you, Bella, believe me." she said, before turning around and walking away.

I walked to gym with a baby-faced blond boy named Mike Newton. He talked most of the time, so I was free to question whether or not I had just hallucinated my lab partner.

Coach Clapp, my gym teacher, didn't make me change for today. I sat on the bleachers watching four volleyball games run simultaneously. I thought about what Edward had done and what Alice had said.

If he liked me, that might explain why he had been looking at me so strangely, but I couldn't be certain. If he liked me, was he the kind of boy who was too shy to ask? But how could he like me, anyway? I was completely ordinary, and he was, well, perfect.

Before I headed back to my truck, I went to the office to drop off the papers I had been given in the morning. The office door swung open and I walked straight into- guess who- Edward. His shirt was cool, but not as cold as his hands were. They felt like ice. I looked up at him, eyes wide.

He muttered something that sounded like "I'm Sorry" then briskly walked away. His expression looked guarded and his eyes wary. I turned to watch him leave, confused, and he looked back over his shoulder before quickening his pace down the sidewalk.

I dropped off my signed slips with Mrs. Cope, and walked back outside to watch Edward and the rest of the Cullens drive away in a silver Volvo; great, they were rich, too. No way could a boy like Edward like a girl like me.

I half ran to my truck and turned on the loud engine. I drove home, fighting tears the entire way.