TWILIGHT AND ALL IT'S CHARACTERS BELONG TO STEPHENIE MEYER.
THANK YOU GLEENA AND HAYLEYHOO FOR YOUR ENCOURAGING WORDS!!
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Everyone had been talking about her. It was a good two months that had been eaten up by "Isabella Swan", and that was before she even got here. Apparently, she was some major hippie from California. That didn't really say much, mainly because in a small town like this, the majority of people think that everyone in California is a hippie.
I was hoping that this girl would show up in some crazy clothes and freak everyone out with her idea's of peace and the "power of mind altering drugs". These people needed a dose of different, if you know what I mean. They all lived in their little bubble, and everything that was "right" had to be approved by the god damn Stanley's.
The Stanley's.
God, I hate those buffoons. Why? Oh well, I suppose I should start a little further back, a reason may help you hate them as well.
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It all started freshman year, my first day at Forks High. Everything was so new, and so exciting, I was so ready for this transition to adulthood. Freshman year. So many good things, and one bad thing to go and ruin it all. I met Alice, Rosalie, and Jasper, some of the best friends I know I will ever have that year. I got to have the feeling of being a part of something, it was the ideal position I wanted to be in my freshman year; I had friends, once in a lifetime kind of friends, I was getting good grades, all in all I was doing okay.
That was, of course, until that wiry haired monstrosity walked into my Geometry class.
She waltzed in like some sort of god, the kind that has people praying, and offering human sacrifices just so they can appease her. It was intriguing, in a disgusting kind of way.
I guess I must have been staring because one moment she's scowling, and the moment she looked at me her face lit up like the fucking fourth of July. I smiled back, trying to be polite, but she took it as something much different.
She practically ran over to the empty desk next to me and hastily began flipping her hair, batting her eyelashes, and laughing in a very nonhuman way. At first I was confused, but after a few days I got the jist of her advances. She was a fisherman, and I was the prize fish.
It was bad at school, but when delivery boys started coming over to my house to deliver pastries, and designer clothes I knew I had to intervene. I didn't feel that way about her, and I felt it wrong to allow her to think differently...again, I was trying to be the good guy, the polite guy.
Needless to say, my civility fell through.
It was a Wednesday in April when I finally broke the news to her. During geometry, I passed her a note to have her meet me after class behind the gym. I was ready. I had gone over my rehearsed speech so many times with Alice that I was finding myself writing it out while trying to write an essay for English.
I remember it all so clearly, and if there was one moment where I wish I could go back in time, this would be it.
I was waiting against the wall, going over my spiel, hoping that she would take it gracefully, when she sauntered around the corner. She had the goofiest smile on her face, which, at the time I was grateful for. I thought, naively, that she would take the news with grace. I was wrong.
"Hey there." She smiled "I didn't think you'd ever get the hints."
Oh. Shit.
She thought I asked her here to confess my undying love for her?! This was bad...this was really really bad.
"Yeah...um...about that...I...uh..." My speech was gone, my well practiced words were thrown out the window. I had no idea what I was doing now.
Her finger came up to my mouth, in what I assume was supposed to be a sultry move. It wasn't. Her finger was clammy, and smelled like something rotten. I suppressed my need to gag by swallowing back everything. Again, wrong move on my part.
She caught on to the fact that I was holding something back, but she got the something wrong. She moved quickly after that, like a rabid animal. Her clammy fingers moved from my mouth to my cheek. I swallowed again...wrong move.
Her face plunged into mine with such force that I thought she had broken my nose. I didn't realize she was kissing me until her hot breath was in my throat. I didn't move, I didn't want to egg her on. Suddenly, she pulled away, her eyes blazing with...what I assumed to be passion. However, she looked more like a hunter who was finally plunging his knife into a doe. It was a frenzied kind of gaze.
"What's wrong, baby? You scared?" She giggled, one of the most horrifying giggles I had ever heard. "Don't worry, I'll be gentle." How had this happened? How did I get wrangled into this? I didn't know, I didn't want to know. All I wanted to do in that moment was run away. So..
"Uh...I gotta go. Now." That was all I managed to say. I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but I had to get out of there. So I turned around, as quickly as I could without losing my balance, and ran. I didn't know where I was going, but I was happy that I was leaving.
That was the beginning of the end of my happiness here.
I suppose my little stunt got her to understand why I had asked her there. If I had known what I know now, I would have gone along with it, let her think that I loved her.
I didn't know her family owned the whole town. I didn't know that telling her, or showing her that I didn't like her would result in lawsuits, and loneliness. I just...didn't know.
That night I came home to find that dad had been given his two weeks notice, and Emmett was off the football team. I called Alice only to find that she had been fired from her job, and Rosalie was no longer a cheerleader. Jasper's dog suddenly got sick for no reason. Hell was upon me.
I told dad what had happened and he was incensed. His face turned red, and his eyes became wide.
"I'll take care of this, Edward. I'll get everything back, I promise." He calmed me a little with this promise. He was my dad, I thought he could do anything.
Later that week, Sue Clearwater came up from Seattle. She was a lawyer, a very good one. She wasn't attached to Forks at all, which meant the Stanley's had no influence over her. She was like a wrecking ball, determined to get justice. She sat all of us down, and when I say all of us, I mean it. Alice, Jasper, Rosalie, Emmett, dad, and I were all in our living room answering Sue's questions, and beginning to hope that, maybe, just maybe she could change things for us.
"When did you first notice she was attracted to you, Edward?"
"Um, It was a couple days after I met her. She was being really...umm...flirty? I guess that's the right word."
"And how did you react to this?" She was writing everything down, my words, and my reactions to her questions.
"Well, at first I tried to ignore it, hoping she would get over it, ya know?"
"And she didn't?" Sue looked up at my from behind her glasses.
"Um, no. She started sending things to my house, like um...food, and stuff? I figured I should try and tell her that I didn't feel that way about her. Ya know? I didn't want to lead her on...which I wasn't...but I guess just by showing up at school I was showing my 'love'". Everyone laughed at that, which I was glad for. It had been nearly a week since I had heard them all laugh.
"So, you were planning on telling her that you didn't feel the same way she did?"
"Uh, yeah. I actually had a speech planned, I wrote it out, and went over it with Alice."
"That's true, he did. We went over it like..a zillion times." Alice had to chime in. Which made Sue chuckle a little.
"Okay, when did you tell her?"
"Well, actually I never got the chance. She...kind of assaulted me." Sue's face became bright, like this was a good thing. "Oh, um...no, not like in the legal sense, at least I don't think in the legal sense. She thought I meant something else, she thought I had asked to talked to her because I liked her."
"So, you started the whole thing?"
"I guess...I mean, I was trying to do the right thing, ya know? But she kissed me, and I didn't know what to do, so I just left. I didn't really know how to handle it."
After my talk with Sue, everyone got there livelihoods back, in a way. We were ostracized by the entire community. No one would talk to any of us, all because Jessica didn't get what she wanted.
I was hoping that this new girl, Isabella, would change things. I wanted her to be a shock to the community, a little electrical impulse that would knock some sense into the community.
I was walking through the hall that day, hearing her name over and over again. People were saying she was beautiful, but quiet. I was disappointed, I thought I would hear her coming from miles away. My hope began to slip.
Then I saw her. Not well, mind you, it was only from behind, but her flowing chestnut hair fell so gracefully over her back. It was long, and it moved like she was in a hair commercial. I wanted to catch up to her, introduce myself or something, but I didn't want to seem too forward. So, I waited.
Then, at lunch, while Alice was trying to tell me about her latest shopping trip, I really saw her. She was alone, sitting at a table made for two.
"Ah...I see you've fallen for the new girl, too?" I whipped my head back to Alice, who had a huge smirk on her face.
"No, I'm just intrigued. Something new in Forks? Why aren't you staring?" Alice was always one for 'new'. New anything was good for Alice. In fact, that's probably why she became my friend in the first place, because I was something different, exotic.
"I was actually going to let you handle this one. Tell me if it's worth it, okay?" She was pushing me from the table, trying to get me to go talk to her.
"I don't know what to say! I don't know what she likes, or doesn't like, I might screw up the whole thing. You're more of a people person..."
"You'll never know what she likes or doesn't like if you don't get your ass over there! Now, Go!" She pushed a little harder.
"Fine, but if I pull my ear, you come over and help, got it?"
"Get it, Got it, whatever! Just go, you wimp!" She pushed again, harder.
I turned slowly, and began my way across the cafeteria. I got to her little table, and was expecting her to look up, but she was chewing happily on her sandwich, with a faint grimace growing on her face. I didn't think it was my fault, I mean I hadn't said anything yet. It was ridiculous how nervous I was. There was no reason to be...god, just say something you big oaf!
"Hello. You're Isabella Swan, am I correct?" Am I correct? Did I just ask the new girl if she was the new girl? How stupid!
But I got a reaction I was expecting from my fumbled first words. Her eyes, which had been hidden from me before, shot up to look at me. Her eyes. Her big, beautiful, chocolate milk eyes were staring at me. I smiled quickly, trying to look more friendly than menacing, as I assumed I looked to her.
"Uh...yeah...just Bella. I mean...yes...you are correct...and...umm..hi." She smiled up at me, her adorably crooked teeth glittering in the florescent lights. But that was it. Just a smile. After that she didn't move, it was like she was paralyzed where she was. Was she scared of me? Was I being threatening? I didn't feel threatening...I should say something...
"Yes, well, my name is Edward Cullen. I was new here a few years back. I know how these kids can be, not very welcoming, are they?" I stammered a little, I hoped she wouldn't notice. I reflexively flipped my hair out of my eyes, and heard a faint little gasp. Was that a good thing? I didn't know, mainly because she was still frozen. I wanted to hear her talk again, I wanted to keep her going, but I didn't know what to say, so I just cleared my throat. That seemed to bring her back, and she began again...
"Oh...uh...yeah. Not very...cordial." She shook her head then, like she was trying to forget something. I didn't know what to do from there, so I shifted uncomfortably."But I don't mind, really. I've never really done all this before. Is this usually how the new kid is treated?". She's never done this? What does that mean? That she's never been the new kid, duh. God, I can be such a moron sometimes. I had to back peddle then, I remember her asking a question, but I had to go backwards to remind myself what it was...um...new kid...new kid...is this how they are all treated! Right...
"Yeah, especially in a small town like this." I looked over at Jessica's table, she was glaring at Bella's back. I quickly turned from Jessica to look at my usual table to see Alice flashing me a wide grin. I knew she was dying to meet her, she was practically bouncing out of her seat. I knew that if I made her wait any longer...well, she wouldn't wait any longer. I was almost positive that in thirty seconds, if Bella wasn't beginning to walk toward her, Alice would be sitting in this poor girls lap. So... "Would you like to sit with me today?".
It was quiet for a while after that, Bella just continued to stare up at me. Neither of us moved, and I was becoming increasingly aware of Alice's eyes on my back. She was making me uncomfortable, but I was more concerned with Bella's reaction. Which wasn't much, her mouth was somewhat agape, and her eye's became wider, but that was it.
Right when I was about to apologize for being so forward, a small squeak came from Bella's little mouth.
"Yes?" She said it as if it were a question, like she was waiting for me to suddenly rescind the invitation. Did I look like that kind of guy? I didn't think so...this was a very strange experience.
After she gathered up all her things, clumsily, we walked over to my usual table. Alice was trying to pretend like nothing new, or exciting was happening in any way. Like it was just lunch as usual. If you were 'in the know' this was a fascinating thing to watch. Alice was our own little performer, always ready for a cue.
Once Bella was seated, which seemed to be a big ordeal, I introduced her to everyone. It was rather comical watching her trying to squeeze into the poorly shaped cafeteria table, not because she couldn't fit, but because of all the ways her body moved to try and help her, only hindered her attempts. If it had been Alice, or Rose acting this way I would have laughed, but I had only known Bella for a few moments, so I held it all in.
I wasn't paying attention to the conversation unfolding around me, not until Bella smiled up at me. It was one of the most breathtaking moments of my life thus far. Her radiance was palpable, her scent tasted like wildflowers, and honey. So sweet, so natural. She was like home to me, and I didn't understand why. I've never felt this way about a girl, and from what I had picked up from my observations of high school relationships, it took time to want to hold someone, it took time to feel so complete when she smiled at you.
After lunch, I decided I was going to go to my car. I couldn't handle class right now. I was lost in my own head, knowing that what I felt...or what I thought I felt was completely irrational. It was probably just because she was new, right? It was just that she was much better looking than any of the girls here, like a shock to my numb senses. Maybe she is what all girls look like outside of Forks...and Chicago...and New Hampshire...and Italy...God...this nagging feeling was not leaving me alone.
As I was trying to wrap my brain around the idea of me having such strong feelings for this new girl, I looked up. I had seen something, and was in no mood to get caught by security. I instinctively sunk into my seat, while still trying to sneak a peek at who it was I saw. As I inched higher, I noticed those disgusting, frizzy curls. They were poking out in every direction, like some sort of beacon that let's people know she's coming. Usually it helped, and I was relieved for a moment that security wasn't roaming the parking lot.
I was momentarily relieved, however. I dared to sit up in my seat, and sprang back down below the dashboard when I saw her. My beautiful Bella was walking, and talking with Jessica Stanley. In that moment, I knew something was wrong. Hadn't Jessica been staring daggers at Bella's back at lunch? I saw it, I had witnessed this visual assault, myself.
Something bad was going on here. No. Something bad was planned to happen. I wasn't going to let Jessica destroy Bella's reputation like she had ruined mine, and all of my friends.
I wasn't going to let Jessica happen to my Bella.
There was no way in hell.
HEY THERE EVERYONE. I HOPE THIS CHAPTER STARTED SOME MINDS A CRANKEN'.
I HAVE SO MANY IDEA'S REGARDING WHERE TO TAKE THIS, BUT I WANNA HEAR SOME OF YOUR IDEA'S, TOO!! SO, GIVE ME SOME REVIEWS, AND LET ME KNOW WHAT'S GOINJG ON IN THOSE HEAD'S OF YOURS!
BE HONEST!!!
I LOVE YOU ALL!
