CHAPTER TWO

I looked away quickly, blushing at how foolish I must look. He was Edward Cullen after all, he was elusive. Mysterious. And completely off limits to me, I wasn't even close to his league. But then again, I knew of no girl who was. But why he was so appalled almost made me sad, surely he was used to girls fawning over her?

I tried listening to Mr. Banners lecture but I couldn't help shaking the uneasy and embarrassed feeling that catching eyesight with Edward Cullen had left me. His eyes were, indeed a deep shade of gold that went surprisingly well with his bronze colored hair. He was pale too, thought not disgustingly pale like me. He was pure white pale but pulled it off, he could be a snow prince. Pale and cold. Like winter itself.

"Take a few minutes to discuss where you and your partner will meet, you have ten minutes. I shouldn't give you this time, seeing as you teens have your communication devices. Facebook, ha! In my day…" Mr. Banner drowned on about Facebook while I sat stiff. We had to do what?

Meet with your partner… meet with my parenter…

I wanted to raise my hand and tell Mr. Banner something smart and completely true like, "Mr. Banner, I cant do that because my partner is a prince and I am a peasant and our classes don't mix." Or "Mr. Banner, if I have to spend time with this gorgeous specimen we call Edward Cullen I might just faint on spot and die because obviously, God has sent me an angel to take me to heaven." But I chose otherwise and kept my mouth shut. Instead starring at the wall behind my teacher's head. Beside me, I could swear I heard Edward sigh.

Great, he didn't want to do this either. Though his reasons were most likely nothing like mine.

Instead his words came out clean and crisp.

"I'm Edward Cullen, we should meet later in Port Angels so we can go ahead and get this out of the way. Okay?"

It took me a few seconds to comprehend his words and voice. How it was so musical, like he spoke to go along with a rhythm only he could hear. And his words… they were harsh. Going back to my 'he didn't want to meet with me' thoughts.

I couldn't be offended though, I mean I was. But why would anyone like him wish to meet someone like me?

I swallowed hard and turned my head slowly, I probably looked like a freak.

Nodding slowly I somehow managed in a small voice to reply.

"Sure."

His face remained impassive, though he looked slightly annoyed. He probably thought I was a mental freak too.

"Okay, do you know where Twilight is? It's a coffee shop. We should meet at six, if you don't have any other plans."

Somewhere inside me I hoped this was secretly a date he had planned out but I wasn't that dumb. But I knew where Twilight was and agreed to meet him, trying not to look at him for a longer amount of time then what he would find comfortable.

At the end of class I was practically on my toes jumping out and down. When the bell rang and Edward Cullen left as fast as he had appeared in a swift motion of grace and elegance, I was left to slowly put my things back into my bag, pull my jacket over my shoulders and make my way back into the hallways of Forks High where I prepared for gym.

By the time I got home I was tongue tied for absolutely no reason. I was ... giddy. In the simplest of words, for no reason at all. Edward Cullen was a mystery like the novels I read so often, and with this trip to Twilight I hoped I would unravel him. I knew it was stupid, before today I had only admired Edwards handsome frame from afar and wondered how it would feel to be-to look like that. Amazing I guessed, I wasn't as much as a freak as I claimed to be.

Like any other girl, the thought of Edward Cullen made me as happy as a small child on Christmas morning.

As soon as I came bouncing into the house my mom took one look at me and knew something was up, she even stopped gazing belovedly into the at Phil Dwyer to question me. But I gave away no secrets, which I was sure I'd regret, my mother would pry it out of me eventually. But for now, I remained silent.

I spent the next hour in my room wondering what to wear. I didn't have many choices, I'd always been a jeans and T-shirt kind of girl. And then again, I didn't even have to look special. Why should I?

Even dolled up I was nothing close to a type of girl that would even look presentable beside Edward. And the way he'd looked at me today… like I was some Edward-obsessed freak. Which I guess by this point I was. For all I know I could be turning into Jessica Stanley and Edward could be my Mike Newton.

I eventually just put on skinny jeans, boots and a cardigan over a tank top. I put earrings on, little owl ones. And exchanged my usual chap stick for lipstick, grabbed my keys off my dresser and made my way downstairs.

"And just where are you going?" My mother asked, eyes narrowed suspiciously.

I sighed, eying the living room where she sat with Collin and my father. Of course they sat together when they knew I was hiding something, my family was nosy in its truest form. The motto of our house was "If one Swan knows, we all know."

"I have to meet with a friend for a science project," I said, nodding at my backpack I had slung over one shoulder.

"Sure you do." Collin said, puffing out his chest and turning to Charlie, "Dad, Bella's meeting a boy, Bella's meeting a boy,"

Charlie grunted in acknowledgment but otherwise made no attempt to talk to me. His motto was "Let the wife deal with Bella's life". Something he constantly reminded everyone in the family.

"Be safe Bella." Renee said, still looking suspicious but a smirk appeared on her face. Making me roll my eyes as soon as my mom was out of sight.

She was just happy that I wasn't in the house reading or listening to music like I usually do, she always wanted me to be like her when she was a teen. And that involved dating random guys, gossiping with friends and spending all my money on clothes I would wear once then forget in the back of my closet.

The trip to Port Angeles was forty-five minutes, so I spent the time listening to whatever music I could find on my piece of crap radio and singing along whenever I caught along to the usually pointless lyrics.

I had been to Twilight twice before with Angela when we'd been at the Port Angeles bookstore just a few blocks away. It sat alone away from the strip mall and few restaurants that Port Angeles had to offer. It was still a comfy spot though; it was even better than Starbucks in Angela's opinion, built in a brick building with a huge fireplace and a latte that could do wonders.

I arrived twenty minutes early, spending the first five in my truck before I got curious. Behind Twilight I could spot a small trail leading into the woods. It seemed harmless and I had a few minutes to spare, so I jumped out of my truck and made my way over to the trail, surveying the flattened ground and recent footmarks, I began walking. Deeper and deeper and eventually came to two separate ways, one looked as innocent as the original trail. The other was dangerous and mysterious, like Edward.

I took the second trail. As I began walking deeper into the woods I began loosing track of time, not noticing that the sky above was getting darker and the air stiffer. It wasn't until I heard a distinct cracking sound that I stopped and noticed how far I had gone.

In shorter words, I was lost. The trail had stopped a while back and I had kept walking, unaware into the forest. Lost by its silent wildlife and green plants.

Crack.

I stopped cold again, it sounded like someone had stepped onto a branch. And not something small like a doe or a squirrel, something bigger. Something heavier. Something… human.

That's when I began to panic. I quickly turned the way I had come and immediately began running; trying to remember everything Charlie had taught me as a child.

How could I have been so stupid? And to make matters worse my cell phone was in my car with my purse-which had my pepper spray and knife- wonderful.

The footsteps grew quicker, whatever-whoever it was, was chasing me. And coming fast. And unless my C average in gym class didn't give a hint I wasn't the most fast-or coordinated person. I was weak and vulnerable. I was Bella.

Suddenly the air seemed to grow colder than it had before and I could feel it-them behind my back. I went to scream but a feminine hand covered my mouth before I could. She turned me around to face her and I met pitch black eyes, like those of the devil. They were stone cold and hungry-like an animal. She was the predator and I was the prey she was out to eat. I knew she wasn't human, from her posture and appearance. No human could be that cruel.

She was cruelly beautiful, her skin so white it faintly reminded me of someone in the back of my panicked mind. Her hair was long and pitch black, like she used ink for shampoo, and as she opened her mouth and leaned her mouth towards me I saw fangs. I briefly was remembered of the book Dracula.

She's a vampire, I thought.

She's a vampire who's going to kill me.

As soon as her mouth met my neck I was on fire, the slightest tip of her fangs slid into my skin and I was gone. It felt like I was being dipped into a pool of lava, like my body was the earth's core and lava was trying to explode out of me.

I saw a sudden movement behind her and she was gone, a scream echoed in my mind and I realized it was her death scream. The thing-the vampire that was going to kill me had been killed my something much more powerful. That didn't help my situation out at all.

All of a sudden I met a pair of familiar eyes, except they weren't gold. They were black, animalistic. But not with the same cruelty the woman's had.

It was he, Edward Cullen. The reason I was out in Port Angeles instead of at home, in bed reading. It was him why I was in the pain I was in now. And the look on his face told me he knew as much.

I could feel myself falling asleep as he spoke the last words I heard as a human, his soft, musical voice murmured softly yet pained.

"Forgive me, Isabella Swan."

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