**Important: I reworked the outline a bit, and chapter 2 had to be updated. Please go back and give it a quick read so you don't miss anything!
Chapter 3
BPOV
The next morning when I pull into the school parking lot, I'm already exhausted. My night was plagued with memories that I've been putting off in the daylight. I don't know how many times I woke gasping, blinking away my nightmares. Always the same, two sets of inky purple eyes watching me.
Today day is draining me and it hasn't even begun. I slap my cheeks to wake myself up and push open my door. There are a few students milling about, chatting by their cars. Mike Newton jogs over as soon as I slide out of my truck.
"Hi, Bella. How's it going? Liking Forks so far?" he asks. I want to roll my eyes. Oh, just the usual, Mike. A couple of vampires and some algebra homework. I have no answer for him except a smile. He grins back, obviously pleased, and offers to walk me to my first class. I can't think of any reason to say no. He chats about school and upcoming events, but I can't concentrate.
My steps stutter when I feel a tap on my mind. I glance around and spot a lone figure leaning against a silver Volvo. Arms crossed and wearing sunglasses, Edward Cullen looks like a smoldering James Dean. A blush burns my cheeks and my heart picks up automatically. I curse myself, knowing he can hear it. My eyes fall back to the damp pavement, but I can feel his stare burning into my back. Another tap to my mind has me instinctively reaching my hand to my forehead before I force it back down to my side.
"Bella?"
I glance up at Mike and he's looking at me expectantly.
Shit. "I'm sorry?"
"I asked if you wanted to come." I don't say anything and he keeps talking, becoming less sure of himself as he speaks. "To La Push… the beach we're going to this weekend?"
"Oh, right!" I lie, having missed this entire conversation. "That beach. Um, maybe… I'll have to check with Ch- my dad."
Mike grins. "Great! We usually camp out that night, make a bonfire. Should be a lot of fun." His voice gets deeper on the last part and it takes me a full minute to realize he's trying to flirt with me.
"Right…" The bell rings, saving me from having to give a proper response. Instead I smile and hurry into my class.
"I'll save you a seat at lunch," Mike calls after me. I wave once without turning back around.
Throughout the day, I keep half a mind on my classes while casually keeping an eye out for the Cullens. I don't see any sign of them until third period when I pass the little one in the hall. I glance at her from the corner of my eye, but she doesn't look at me. Her head is down, short dark hair falling around her face. Her lips are pulled into a scowl and she's rubbing her temples. I don't see any of them again until lunch.
Angela and I walk to the lunch line, talking about the upcoming English paper.
Angela shakes her head. "Mr. Berty ripped my last paper apart, I'm not looking forward to this one."
"Let me take a look at your paper and I'll help you through it," I offer.
She looks up, smiling. "Really? You wouldn't mind?"
I wave her off. "'Course not. English is my strong suit. You should see what I can do with a Shakespeare passage," I joke, "Pre-calc, on the other hand, is a struggle."
She nods sympathetically. "Varner is tough."
We grab our trays of food and head back to the table. I deliberately keep my eyes away from the Cullen table. I'm so focused on this, that the tap on my mind from the opposite direction completely throws me. I flinch and can't stop myself from looking over. Edward Cullen is standing by the cafeteria doors, watching me. His eyes narrow and the look on his face is calculating. He caulks his head to the side and I feel another very deliberate tap. I force my rigid shoulders to stay still and tighten the walls around my mind. I know that look. I've seen it on too many faces recently. He's playing with me.
With a concentrated effort, I relax my stance and focus back on Angela as we sit down. Lunch moves slowly and I'm hyper aware of the table of vampires behind me. There are no more grazes on my mind, but I keep my guard up regardless. I'm so distracted, that I have a hard time following the conversation and I think I agree to the beach trip without realizing it.
"Oh good!" Jessica squeals, "We need more girls there or the guys break out the guitars and start jamming". She puts air quotes around the word and rolls her eyes. "They're not very good," she whispers loudly.
"Hey, I'm a great guitar player," Mike says, jabbing his chest and causing Eric to snort. They go back and forth defending their musical skills.
Angela squeezes my arm and gives me a little smile. "I'm glad you're coming, I'll have someone to talk to when they start drinking."
I smile back, feeling a kinship with the girl. It's clear that Angela doesn't really fit in with this oh-so high school lot. She's such a nice girl and I can see the possibility of true friendship in her. Easy and uncomplicated.
"Of course," I say. A little beach trip wouldn't kill me and I would really like a real friend.
Lunch ends and I make my way to Biology.
He's already there when I walk in. I keep my head down shuffle to my seat.
We don't speak as the class settles in. I almost expect him to, but Edward doesn't say a word. When I peek over at him, he's leaning back in his chair, eyes on the front of the class, with a small smile on his face. It's strange. He looks like he's waiting patiently for something. I put my head back down, doodling on my notebook and counting the seconds.
Mr. Banner gets up from his seat and walks to the closet, pulling out a rolling cart of microscopes.
"We're going to start with the onion root lab today. You'll work in teams of two with your lab partner."
At his words, Edward sits up and turns to me, his smile widening. I fight back a groan.
"Hello, partner," he says in a smooth and somewhat smug voice. I turn to face him with a scowl, but my jaw drops instead.
Gold.
His eyes are gold. Buttery gold. I feel like the classroom is turning sideways. Where is the red? Did I get this entirely wrong? Is he not really a vampire?
I clutch the table with my fingers and take a deep breath, trying to orient myself. My eyes run over him, and there is no denying what I see. From the luminous pale skin and ethereal good looks to the dangerous undertones, Edward Cullen is most definitely a vampire.
Then what the fuck is wrong with his eyes?
I have to bite my lip to keep from blurting those words out. They're on the tip of my tongue. Edward watches me struggle, his brows furrowed in confusion. The now familiar tap on my mind pulls me out of the moment and reminds me why I can't ask. Too dangerous.
Mr. Banner places a microscope on our table with a worksheet. Edward raises his eyebrows with a polite expression.
"Ladies first?"
I grumble and pull the microscope to me, glancing at the slide and adjusting it before writing down the answer.
"May I?"
I stop writing and glance at him through my hair. "I guess," I say, pushing the microscope over to him. It makes a horrible screeching noise across the desk. He looks at the slide for a brief moment, before glancing at my answer and nodding. I can't help the indignant huff that escapes me. Damn straight, it's the right answer.
We continue on for a few slides in silence, me writing the answer and Edward checking the slide. After a while, he stops reading over my work. We fall into a routine, moving along quickly.
"Done this lab before?" he asks, replacing the slide with another one.
I shrug and pull the microscope back. "I took biology last year," I say.
"I see. Liking Forks so far?" he asks.
I peer sideways at him and see a tiny smirk on his face. It's the same question Mike asked me this morning, but instead of giving the same non-answer, I blurt out, "Not really."
His smile grows a half an inch and I can't help my heart pounding. Damn vampires. "May I ask why?" he says in that silky voice.
I try to give him a hard look. "Too crowded."
He laughs, the clear sound making my breath catch. "Forks is crowded? That must have been some barren wasteland you grew up in."
"Yeah, well, I don't like to be bothered." I say the last part with emphasis.
He nods, still with that smile on his face. "Point taken."
He shifts the microscope back over to me as I reach for the slide. My fingers brush the back of his hand and I gasp, my body going rigid with shock.
It's not the cold, I expected that.
When we touch, a zing of electric energy vibrates through me unlike anything I've ever felt. It's more than just a normal impression of someone. It curls inside me like an embrace, leaving me wired and exposed. I'm so shocked, I jerk my hand back and cover it with my other one.
I look up and meet Edward's wide eyes as he stares down at me. He's stone still. He glances from his hand to mine and back up to my eyes. I can't look away.
Slowly, almost lazily, his wide eyes narrow and he cocks his head to the side, never breaking our stare. He leans in closer to me and my heart seizes in my chest. Our faces are barely a foot away when his lips part and he speaks in a soft voice.
"What are you?"
I feel the blood drain from my face. My hands are shaking and I still can't look away. His bright eyes are boring into me.
The bell rings overhead and I jump a foot in my seat. I feel like I'm on the verge of a panic attack, but the noise releases me from his locked gaze. I grab my notebook and my bag and hurry out of the room. I trip in the doorway but keep running, my heart beating a mile a minute.
Can't run forever, Bella.
I'm sorry for the delay in updates so soon into the story. My excuse is twofold- I decided to rework the outline a bit (hence the maintenance on chapter 2) and I'm graduating from college this week, so this past month got a bit crazy.
I meant for this chapter to be longer, but I thought you'd appreciate something sooner than later. I'm working through chapter 4 and 5 now, those will be up soon.
Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading and reviewing, I love to hear from you!
Let me know what you think so far and I'd love to hear your guesses on what's coming up.
Lots of love,
Evie
